


Fuller House: Burned

by comixgirl



Series: Burned [5]
Category: Fuller House (TV)
Genre: Action & Romance, Drama, F/M, Family Drama, Thriller
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:54:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 36,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25797733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/comixgirl/pseuds/comixgirl
Summary: My name is Jackson Fuller, I use to be in the CIA until I got burned.  When you're burned you have nothing; no cash, no credit, no job history.  To make matters worse I've brought all this down on my family that I haven't seen in 12 years.  Now I have to make the best of a bad situation, renew old relationships, and try to regain control of my life.
Relationships: Jackson Fuller/OC, Jackson Fuller/Rocki
Series: Burned [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1862437
Comments: 49
Kudos: 2





	1. The Prodigal Son

**Author's Note:**

> Story idea inspired by the Burn Notice Series (and other spy movies/shows). This is not a crossover.
> 
> Cast Photos & other misc images pertaining to the story can be found here: https://www.pinterest.cl/comixgrl/fanfic-photos/

~December 15, 2037 1625 hrs ~

Dr Roxanne "Rocki" Mahan was sitting besides the sleeping form of Jackson Fuller listening to the beep of the heart monitor as she had for the past eight hours. It had been three full days since Jackson Fuller unexpectedly returned to his family's home and promptly passed out in his mother and Rocki's arms. When he had arrived Jackson was bleeding from the head and his back. The EMT's arrived within minutes of Rocki's call and upon arrival took over attending to Jackson's wounds. He was rushed to the nearest hospital followed closely by DJ and Rocki. Upon arriving at the ER room, Jackson was found to have two 9mm hollow point bullets lodged in his shoulder blade. Fortunately the bullets did not shatter the bone. Jackson's thick jacket had apparently not stopped the bullets from penetrating his body but slowed their velocity enough to save his life. The two bullets were promptly removed from his right shoulder and stitched up. The gash on his skull was sown shut with thirteen stitches. An X-Ray and MRI revealed Jackson had three cracked ribs and a mild concussion. After he was deemed well enough to be moved Jackson was transferred from the ER to one of the intensive care rooms in the tower.

DJ Hale spent the first night by her son's side until early the next morning. Her father, Danny Tanner took over so DJ could go get a good nights sleep in her own bed. Michelle Tanner relieved her father after dinner so he could go rest and stayed with Jackson until Steve Hale took over the following morning. Stephanie Gibbler took the night shift for day two and when the morning came she was replaced by her niece Ramona. Ramona stayed until dinner time when DJ returned to watch over her son. Rocki Mahan took the next shift so DJ could go home and try and get some rest but know that even when the older woman was not here sitting with her oldest son that she was not resting.

It is now coming to the end of her shift and Roxanne "Rocki" Mahan stretches in the chair and looks at her phone. It is now 4:25pm and she knows someone will be by soon to take over for her. Doctor CJ Harbenberger steps into the room as the doctor making rounds today. She smiles at Rocki as she comes to look in on Jackson. She notes his vitals and asks how she's doing.

"The chair is comfy, not as comfy as my bed but ok none the less." Rocki states. I'm going to run to the restroom." Rocki informs the attending doctor.

Rocki was only gone for a mere ten minutes. She had received a text from Stephanie stating that she would be there in half an hour to take over from her. Rocki was starving and would be going out for dinner as soon as she was done with her tenure here. The sound of a medical alert rang at the nurses station and the nurse making rounds and CJ ran to the one room Rocki was afraid to look at. Jackson's room. Rocki rushed back to the room to see what was happening. To her surprise, Jackson's bed was empty. CJ and the nurse were in the process of trying to figure out exactly how Jackson had gotten up and out of his heart monitor without the alarm going off sooner. His personal effects were also missing. Security was alerted and Rocki had the unfortunate job of calling DJ Hale and letting her know what had just happened.

"What do you mean he's gone?" DJ almost yelled into the telephone.

"I left to go to the restroom, I was just gone ten minutes. When I came back the alarms were going off and Jackson was no where to be found. CJ is talking to security as we speak." Rocki informed her boss.

"I'll be right over. You might as well go home while we try and figure out where Jackson has run off to this time." DJ stated. Rocki said her goodbyes to DJ, went into the hospital room that Jackson had previously occupied to collect her satchel.

Ten minutes later and Rocki was in her dark purple Honda CR-V heading towards her apartment. She was seething at this latest stunt by Jackson Fuller, particularly since she had spent all day in that chair watching and worrying over him.

"I don't know why I let myself worry about Jackson Fuller, he obviously doesn't care about anyone but himself." Rocki said to herself as she drove to her apartment.

"I'm surprised you care about anyone but yourself." The haunting voice of her ex-boyfriend announced from her back seat.

Rocki looked in her review mirror but saw no one. She quickly found a spot where she could pull her Honda CR-V over to the side of the road. When the car came to a stop she put the vehicle into park and looked in the back seat. There, crouched down on the floor was Jackson Fuller. He had a blanket over his body which he discarded now that they were half a mile away from the hospital.

"How the hell did you get into my car?" Rocki questioned.

Jackson Fuller holds out a remote for her car that looks like hers. Rocki digs out her keys to find that the spare remote was removed from her bag. Jackson tosses it back to Rocki. "How long have I been out." Jackson inquired.

"Three whole days. You passed out after walking through your family's front door. You had two bullet wounds, a gash in your head, a mild concussion and have three cracked ribs." Rocki related. "What that hell have you been doing all this time Jackson."

Jackson ignored her question, he was doing his best to survey his environment while keeping his profile hidden. "Give me your phone." Jackson ordered.

Rocki Mahan just glared at him in her rear view mirror. Not sure why she pulled out her cell phone and handed it to Jackson. "You better be calling your mom, she's worried sick."

"I can't call her right now, especially from your phone." Jackson informed Rocki. He pulled up the google maps, typed in an address and hit enter. The map calculated the distance and best route and began telling Rocki where to drive.

"Follow the direction to that location. After we get my things I will tell you what you need to know." Jackson said huddling back down behind Rocki's seat.

The pair drove silently for twenty minutes with Rocki following the various directions. Finally unable to stand it any longer Rocki asked the question twelve years in the making, "So where did you go?"

"Away." Jackson replied choosing not to go into further details with her at this time.

"No shit. Care to elaborate?" Rocki gruffly requested.

"I've been all around the world. Some nice place, some not so nice. I've seen rain, sleet, snow, palm trees, desert, you name it, I've been there." Jackson coldly answered.

"Twelve years, it took you twelve years to let your mother know you were alive, and then you go and almost die in her arms." Rocki admonished Jackson.

"If I could have gone anywhere else at that moment in time I would have. However I'm not in the most trusting of moods at this point so with the limited choices available to me at the time I hobbled to the one place I knew I wouldn't be shot, again, for just showing up."

"Drugs, prostitution, arms dealing..." Rocki began listing off.

"You've been a busy girl." Jackson retorted.

"No Jackson, I'm asking you which of those is your current occupation." Rocki retorted.

"Really, is that what you take me for, some low rent criminal." Jackson asked.

"Insurance fraud, money laundering, hacking..." Rocki continued.

"You're getting closer." Jackson says popping two aspirin.

"Just tell me. What else can lead you to those kind of injuries?" Questioned Rocki.

"Espionage." Jackson said and stopped talking as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the door.

It was another twenty-five minutes before Rocki finally arrived at the location Jackson had put in. An outdoor storage unit. Jackson had typed in the code into her cell phone and handed it to Rocki before they arrived. Jackson had Rocki put on her sunglasses on and obstruct the camera's view by draping her long hair of the left side of her face and positioning her head so it could not capture the exposed side. Rocki input the security code into the keypad at the gate and as soon as the automatic gate was open she drove her vehicle around as Jackson requested and pulled next to the specified storage unit. Jackson had wrapped a hospital towel that he had taken with him around his face to mask his appearance and quickly entered the code for the lock. Raising the sliding door up Jackson entered the room that was filled with various black plastic cases and several suitcase like bags. Jackson grabbed one of the long cases which he tossed into the back of Rocki's CR-V and a good sized carry bag. He locked the unit and once again climbing into the car, hiding his body behind the seats, he instructed Rocki to drive. Once they were through the gate again Jackson told her to take a different way back to San Francisco.

"So who do you work for exactly." Rocki asked Jackson as they got back on the freeway heading toward San Francisco.

"I worked for a centralized intel agency until two weeks ago." Jackson says climbing up into the seat now that they are actually on the highway.

"Centralized intel agency... not very subtle there." Rocki relays to her ex.

"I'm not paid to be subtle anymore." Jackson unzips the bag and pulls out an envelope. He goes through the contents and looks about.

"Take that turnoff Rocki." Jackson insists.

"Why?" Rocki asks perplexed.

"I need a car. The only problem is that I can't buy it, you'll have to do it for me." Jackson informed Rocki.

"Ok, I'll bite. Why do I have to be the one to buy you a car?" Rocki asked as she turned on her right turns signal and drove down the off ramp towards the Acura dealership.

"Because I'm a burned spy. I have no job history, no credit history, I've been locked out of my bank account and even if I wasn't, I don't want the people looking for me to know what I'm going to be driving." Jackson explained.

"So if you have no money how do you expect me to buy a car for you. I'm not exactly rolling in excess cash." Rocki explained.

"Stop at that store and buy a luggage bag, not as large as what I'm carrying, it doesn't have to be fancy, just something we won't need to worry about getting back. I also need a plain short sleeved polo shirt. Also if you bring we a foo foo colored shirt I'm sending you right back into the store." Jackson informs Rocki.

Rocki pulled into a nearby Target Super Store and ran in, found a bag suitable for Jackson's needs, found a red short sleeve polo shirt in his size, paid for them and returned to her car. She found Jackson sitting in the passenger seat of her CR-V waiting for her return. She showed him the items. He took the shirt first, stepped out of the car and pulled on the shirt once he had removed all of the tags. Rocki could she him wince in pain as he put his right arm through the sleeve and pulled his head through the shirt hole. Jackson took the smaller bag, and began transferring stacks of bills from the larger one into the smaller bag.

"I thought you said you were locked out of your bank account?" Rocki said befuddled by the large amounts of money Jackson stuffed into the small bag and the even larger amount still in Jackson's actual bag. She also took note that Jackson was now dressed in non-hospital attire from the waist up. He had on charcoal like T-shirt and a new black leather jacket.

"I am, that doesn't mean I don't have access to other resources. But one of the benefits of being in the intelligence game is that I know where various CIA equipment cache's are and how to access them. I also know which storage units are no longer in their system, because I'm the one that removed them from the official records." Jackson informed his ex-girlfriend.

"Exactly what else is in that storage unit, and what is in the back of my CR-V?" Rocki asked Jackson.

"Specialized equipment in the storage locker." Jackson said as Rocki pulled into parking space of the dealership. "As for your trunk, specialized equipment."

Jackson stepped out of the CR-V and waited for Rocki to follow suit. Jackson took her hand and the two acted like they did back in the day, a happy couple perusing the lot. As the sun was starting to set there were very few buyers in the lot. Jackson and Rocki were approached by one of the salesmen who politely greeted the couple and asked if there was a car in particular they were interested in. Jackson took the lead as the vehicle was for him despite the fact it would be in Rocki's name.

Jackson soon found what he was looking for. It was the only one on the lot and luckily it was in a color he liked.

"Keys." Jackson requested as he stood in front of a new Acura NSX. It was a darker blue and based on what his research had the speed and maneuverability that Jackson would need for high speed chases.

"You're kidding?" Rock asked looking at the price tag.

"Sir, are you sure I can't show you something a bit more... affordable?" The salesman asked reluctantly.

"If you don't want to help us I can always go see if one of the other salesmen wants the commission on this sale." Jackson informed the man crossing his arms.

Quickly doing the math in his head, Steve ran back to get the keys. He was gone two minutes before he came running back. He unlocked the car with the remote when he was close enough and Jackson climbed in and adjusted the seat to his liking. Rocki slid into the passenger seat and had to admit, it felt nice. It had better for the amount of zeros on the car.

Jackson held out his hand for the key and Steve handed it over. Jackson inserted the key into the ignition and started it up. "We'll take it." Jackson said as he turned off the car.

"Can you excuse us for just a moment." Rocki requested The salesman agreed, he hoped that this deal would go through as it would be the largest commission of his entire life."

"Exactly how much money is in this bag?" Rocki inquired.

"One hundred and eighty thousand dollars. They are one hundred dollar bills with twenty bills per pack. There are ninety bill packs in the bag. Fill out the paperwork, give him the bag and leave. Let him deal with the rest." Jackson told Rocki.

"And just where are you planning on going once I have the title?" Rocki asked Jackson Fuller.

Jackson sighed loudly. "Home."

To Be Continued


	2. Homecoming

It was now an hour after Jackson and Rocki had left the Acura dealership. As she made her way toward the old Tanner house she couldn't help but mull over the fact that she had never purchased a car so fast in her life. The moment she showed the money bag to the salesman he counted the money, the paper work was rushed and Rocki was out the door. Jackson stayed in the car during the quick transaction, the service staff quickly cleaned the automobile, installed the plates on "Rocki's" new car and the pair drove off with Jackson leaving Rocki in the dust as he pushed the engine of his new car on the highway.

Rocki Mahan found herself walking up the path to the Tanner/Fuller/Hale home carrying Jackson's black luggage bag and his very heavy black case. She reaches the front door and knocks on the door. When she heard DJ give her trademark It's always open, she reached for the door knob with her free hand and let her self in. Standing in the living room were all of Jackson's immediate family, as she expected them to be waiting for their wayward family member. One grandfather, his mother and stepfather, two brothers, two aunts, and two cousins were present. Seeing Rocki struggling with the case Max came over and took the case from her. His mother told him to put it in the basement for now.

When Max left the room Rocki took a moment to look around and then turning back to DJ asked, "So where's Jackson?" Ironically DJ Hale asked her the exact same question at the exact same time.

"I thought he was with you." Both women answered again in unison.

"I'm going to kill him." Rocki and DJ said in stereo one final time.

Max returned from his little trip to the basement with an iPad in his hands. He was in camera mode and was looking around the room with an infrared filter activated. He was moving about as the group wondered where Jackson had gone to this time when Max apparently found something. Pulling a roll of tape from the satchel he had on, Max taped something to the window nearest the staircase and then lowered the blinds on all of the front windows. Giving the room one more sweep he pulled up a messenger app and sent a text. One minute later Jackson Fuller emerged from the kitchen. Donna Jo Hale wasted no time, crossed the distance and hugged her first born son for the first time in twelve years. Jackson wrapped his arms around his mother and held her for several moments. He could feel her tears on his wounded shoulder and Jackson rubbed her back.

"I'm sorry mom. I'm sorry I've been away for so long. I'm sorry that trouble is right behind me... I never wanted to bring my world to your doorstep." Jackson informs his mother.

"Jackson... where have you been? What are you into?" DJ Hale asks her son.

"I've been dreading this day for years." Jackson tells his family. "I've worked very hard to keep my work life and my personal life separate."

"Jackson, are you in legal trouble?" Danny Tanner asked his grandson.

"Yes and No." Jackson states. "I haven't committed a crime but I was burned by my boss and am being treated like a criminal by certain law enforcement agencies."

"Burned... what are you talking about. Who do you work for?" Max asks annoyed that Jackson seems to be dancing around the issue of where he has been and what he has been doing.

"Ok... I will tell you what is going on. However once I do you'll be a part of this from now on. Anyone that doesn't want to potentially become someone that can be affected by or used against me needs to leave right now." Jackson says. He waits several moments and watches as all in the room stand (or sit) in place.

"Ok then, don't say I didn't give you a chance. So, this all goes back to when I was on the verge of completing my studies. In the months leading up to May I was being swamped with various job offers. Many of which were the same basic IT jobs. One of the jobs was not, it was a logistics and cyber support specialist for the Central Intelligence Agency. They were pushing very hard for me to join them, offering me a considerable amount of money and other benefits but at the time the one major draw back was that I would need to go to their version of boot camp and then an extensive travel schedule that would keep me away from my family and home for a considerable amount of time. Based on those last two factors I wasn't considering the position at that time." Stated Jackson.

"And then you broke up with Rocki." Max said filling in the blanks. DJ Hale gave her middle son a look that implied not now. "Oh come on, you all had to see that's where this was heading."

"Max is of course correct. After the breakup I didn't want to be anywhere near here, so I took the job offer and disappeared... for twelve years."

"Question, what does a logistics and cyber support specialist do?" Stephanie Gibbler asked her oldest nephew.

"You've seen the Mission: Impossible movies correct?" Jackson asked his aunt. Most in the room nodded in response.

"If I were anyone I would be the Luthor and Benji characters." Jackson informed them.

"Ohhh so you're basically a hacker." Tommy Fuller rationalized.

"To simplify things yes. I am a hacker. But a hacker that is prone to field work. So for twelve years I worked all over the globe in every environment imaginable. Rain, snow, jungle, desert, urban, suburban if its on Earth I've been there, and I was very good at my job." Jackson says.

"So good you couldn't bother to let us know you were alive." Max said with disdain.

"Part of my work required me to do some questionable things. Morally ambiguous things. I did everything in my power to keep my work life and my personal life separate which was one of the reasons I separated myself from all of you." Jackson told his family and Rocki.

"What was the other reason." Danny Tanner asked his grandson.

"Once I made the break it was just easier to forget that I didn't have a life prior to the CIA." Jackson explained.

"So what changed all this. Why suddenly show up after twelve years and what does it mean that you're burned?" DJ asks her son.

"Well about a month ago I stumbled upon some files on one of the servers for operations that I had not been a part of. This wasn't unusual as I can't cover every operation but when I looked at the data it pertained to, we'll I'll just call the people assets that I handled. My assets were conduction operation for my director on United States soil." Explained Jackson.

"I thought the CIA wasn't chartered for domestic affairs." Max states.

"It's not, the CIA has absolutely no business conducting any operations of any kind in the US. I brought this discrepancy to my director and I knew I was in trouble the moment he had the door closed. Long story short, I was told to mind my pay grade and forget what I saw. But I couldn't. So, I began to spy on my own department. I started staying late and even longer story short, I broke into my bosses office, installed a keystroke capture on his computer to gain his passwords and then went about copying the contents of his hard drive. The night before I was burned I broke into his safe and stole his operational files on his most clandestine operations."

"You keep using the term burned. What do you mean by that?" Rocki voiced the question for the third time that evening.

"Mission: Impossible uses the term disavowed. When a spy is "let go" usually while they're in the field they receive what is called a Burn Notice. They are immediately cut loose and written off by the agency. Now when as spy is fired they can't just take back all the skills they've given you, my case in particular I had the tech skills before I joined but have learned considerably more and other handy skill sets as well. Anyways, since they can't take that all back they block your credit, lock you out of your bank account, and generally make it impossible to pass anything with a background check, which is just about everything these days. That's what it means to be burned." Explained Jackson.

"So I take it who ever shot at you was trying to get the files you stole?" DJ asked her son.

"You would be right. Fortunately for me I was a moving target and they were using 9mm hollow point rounds I almost lost control of the motorcycle I was on when I got hit. The only reason I'm actually alive is because I threatened to have his files sent to every news outlet on the planet if I died."

"So you're safe now." Michelle Tanner asked the question everyone was wondering.

"No. I've bought myself a small reprieve while he tries to figure out how to get his files back before they end up in the hands of someone who can truly do some damage. That's why they're spying on your house mom." Jackson informed his mother. He handed her the iPad Max had used and showed her the video of the windows.

"Those are called optical bugs. They use an infrared laser pointed at a window and can turn the vibrations into sound. I had Max tape my improvised jammer to the window so that the only vibrations that can read are the ones from the device."

"So the government is spying on us now." Max asks.

"Yes, and this is why I was hesitant to bring my life into your world again. I know this will be hard to do but you need to just go about your lives like I never came home." Explains Jackson.

"Ok, I guess I just have one last question for now." DJ Hale says.

"Sure."

"What's in the case in the basement and the bag on the coffee table?" Questions DJ.

"Severance package in the black bag. Specialized equipment in the basement." Jackson tells his mother.

"Jackson..." His mother says in her motherly voice.

Jackson sighs, unzips the black bag and dumps the content onto the table. Everyone in the room goes "Whoa."

"Holy chalupas... how much is that?" Max asks.

"Just over three-hundred thousand dollars." Jackson informs his family. "It will have to do for now."

"And the case downstairs?" DJ asks again.

"Guns mom." Jackson says straight to the point.

"I don't want guns in this house Jackson." DJ informs her son.

"I respect that mom... however, if I stay, so does the case. I can't be unarmed while there are people out there trying to kill me. The case has a fingerprint scanner on it so only I can open it. I don't treat them like toys and will only use them when my life is in jeopardy." Explains Jackson.

"Anything else?" DJ asks her son.

"I will need to be able to install a security system that I will purchase with my funds. You'll each have a code and I will deal with our nosy new neighbors." Jackson informs the family.

Some time later Jackson Fuller was in the basement of his family's home for the first time in twelve long years. He had broken up his money into various stacks and placed them throughout the room for now until he can store some off site. His mother had been less than thrilled that he was keeping weapons in her home but after showing her how secure the case is she relented, also the fact he threatened to leave again after only just returning to their lives was his trump card. For his part Jackson promised to keep his case out of sight so his mother didn't have to think about the danger he was in every time she entered his room. As if on cue his mother came down the stairs to check on him, much like she would check on him during his teen years.

"Really mom, you just saw me 15 minutes ago, I've already promised not to just disappear again." Jackson told his mother who was now sitting at the end of his bed.

"I know. I actually wanted to discuss something with you but didn't want to call you out on it in front of the whole family, and Rocki in particular." DJ explained.

"Ok, my curiosity is peaked. What do you want to discuss?" Jackson asked sitting up in the bed.

"Chloe Donovan." DJ Hale said.

"Chloe... Donovan. What do you want to know about Chloe Donovan. For that matter how do you even remember me mentioning Chloe Donovan." Jackson wondered aloud. He could actually feel his heart start to race.

"Well, to be perfectly honest, I know that she was your fiance for two and a half years. That you had been living together for almost three years at the time she called me. Apparently you were prone to taking "business trips" and you were overdue on your return. She called me, introduced herself, and asked me if I had heard from you or if you had given me an updated return date. I had to tell her first that not only had I not heard from you recently, I had not heard from you in almost 10 years at that point." DJ informed her son.

"I see. So that's what brought that on." Jackson said putting the pieces together.

"We had a very interesting conversation, something about having lived in Phoenix, Arizona for almost three years at that point in time." DJ said only for Jackson to suddenly sit up.

"Wait... so you knew where I lived these last six years." Jackson said eyeing his mother suspiciously.

"Well I found out where you were living, three years ago. I didn't know for the last six years, only for three of them... if that makes sense." DJ explained.

"So... when did you come to Phoenix?" Jackson asked continuing to glare at his mother. He knew she wouldn't be able to stand the scrutiny.

"I went a two months after Chloe called. You weren't home at the time but I had to go. I actually spent the weekend with Chloe, I had to meet the girl that was engaged to my son after all." DJ informed Jackson.

"Ramona had given me a picture of her so I knew what she looked like, she was very pretty for the record and seemed very sweet. While we ate she showed a few of the more recent photo of the two of you so I could be sure that it was you." Explained DJ.

"So do you still talk to Chloe?" Jackson pondered aloud.

"No she told me that the two of you had broken up shortly after we had spoken and that she was moving on with her life." DJ told her son. "You broke up because she called me?"

"Kind of sort of. I didn't break up with her, she broke off our engagement. When I got home from my overseas operation, which was extended due to unforeseen but nearly fatal circumstances, I returned home for the weekend to relax. I was greeted by a first happy, then irate fiance. She questioned my location, what I was doing, who I was doing it with, and what else I was keeping from her." Jackson explained.

"Realizing that she had a right to know but due to a clause in my contract I could not tell her unless we were married. So I gave her a choice, we could go get married right away and I would tell her everything. Or we had to break up."

"I take it that the later happened." DJ asked rhetorically.

"She didn't like her hand being forced. I tried to explain that unless she was willing to say yes, we were at an impasse. Her family moved her out by the following weekend." Jackson sadly informed his mother..

"I'm so sorry." DJ told her son.

"It's not your fault mom. I don't even blame Chloe. It's the life I chose to lead. She's moved on, and I'm happy for her." Jackson tells his mother.

"You deserve to be happy too." DJ tells Jackson.

"Maybe I will be, one day. Right now, I have to focus on healing, and figuring out my next move."

"Well, I know you have a lot on your plate, just don't give up on love. It may find you when you least expect it." DJ tells her son. "Out of curiosity, what ring did you give to Chloe?" Wondered DJ.

"I take it you know grandpa gave me your mother's ring." Jackson says. DJ nods her head to acknowledge that she knew.

"I put grandma Pam's ring in a safety deposit box after Rocki broke up with me. Since I didn't want to drive all the way back here for it I bought Chloe a new ring. Strike two I guess." Reveals Jackson.

"Oh, what did you do with the house?" DJ wondered.

"I still own it. It's just vacant for the moment." Jackson explained.

"Ok, well... get some rest Jackson. You need to heal up and we'll start to deal with this in the morning." DJ Hale says kissing the top of her son's head like she use to when he was younger.

Jackson Fuller said goodnight and as his mother walked up the stairs for her room Jackson did his best to stretch out on his bed without taxing his injured ribs. As he started to relax for the first time in two weeks, Jackson Fuller checked the Walther CCP that he kept under his pillow. The magazine was in place, a 9mm round was chambered, and the safety was on. He had already swept the house and made sure it was secure and not bugged. Someone was still parked across the street in a white van watching the house, but Jackson would deal with that tomorrow if they were still dumb enough to be there, which he knew they would be.

To Be Continued


	3. Resolution

Six week have passed since Jackson Fuller has returned to the lives of his family after almost twelve year absence. Jackson has just returned to see Dr Connie Jane Harbenberger, or CJ as she prefers, for a checkup. After going over Jackson's latest X-Rays and MRI she gives Jackson a clean bill of health. After his appointment Jackson was walking through the streets of San Francisco enjoying the air but also annoying the FBI agents that have been tailing him since he returned to his mother's home.

The FBI has been chalking up a large amount of miles recently trying to keep up with Jackson. The agents in question apparently are locals but even still, Jackson has lived here his entire life and knows the city better than most. On foot Jackson has the skills necessary to blend into a large crowds fairly easily. He had worn a jacket and ball cap to the doctors office but left the items in CJ's stating he would be back for them at a later time. Walking out of the hospital in a gray polo shirt and sunglasses initially threw the agents off for a couple of blocks before they somehow realized he had left CJ's office.

One of the agents ran after Jackson on foot while his partner followed in their government issued car. Jackson made his way to the local mall where he began blending into the crowd there and ducked into the restroom. The agent followed Jackson in and began checking the stalls for Jackson. He stood outside the final stall, guessing Jackson had to be there. A short time later his partner showed up and the two decided to haul Jackson in. The agents knocked on the door and called Jackson out only to find the stall empty. They then heard something being wedged against the outside of the door. Pulling on the door handle they found themselves trapped in the bathroom. Jackson left the two in the restroom, stopped a few stores down and went about buying a few new clothing items and going to a restroom on the opposite end of the mall, changed clothes made his way to the bus stop to catch a ride to his next appointment.

Jackson Fuller was sitting on the opposite side of Lafayette Park watching a young mother and her son play on the playground equipment on this nice sunny day. The young woman he knew to be Jessica Matthew came here with her son every three days as long as the weather was nice. Jackson had been coming here periodically over the last month observing her patterns. He dressed casually. Brought a book or his iPad and did his best not to draw attention of any kind to himself. The last thing he needed was some suspicious parent thinking he was there to abduct a child... or worse. This would be far easier if he had a younger sibling or cousin to take to the park but as this was no longer the case he was relegated to distant observations.

As he sat reading a book he was soon joined by Ramona Gibbler, his surrogate sister and very good friend. Ramona had initially become a dancer after completing college but was forced to stop after only three years after sustaining a severe injury to her left knee. Ramona recovered physically but the doctors warned against continuing her career due to the strain and the grueling schedule that her dancing required. Jackson learned that a year after her injury she had taken up racing and decided to follow in her father's footsteps and become a Formula 1 racer. She was the first professional woman to do this and the first to follow in a parent's footsteps.

Ramona Gibbler walked up and hugged her brother and gave him a friendly kiss on the cheek. Jackson returned the favor. "Ok Jackson, I'm here now so how can I help you."

"I need to ask you for your car, and you won't be getting it back." Jackson tells her shutting his book.

"And I should just hand it over because..." Ramona asks Jackson. This is something she would expect from the Jackson of her youth, not the suave super spy.

Jackson casually hands Ramona a satchel that he had besides him. Upon opening it she sees stacks of hundred dollar bills bundled together. "That should be more than enough to get you a nicer new car. Just put it in the bank in small amounts over a period of time and it won't set off any red flags." Jackson says. He then holds out his right hand, "Key's please."

Ramona pulls the keys to her forest green Honda Civic Type R. Jackson thanked her and after taking one last look at the subject of his observation before he headed off. As he stood besides his sister he says, "Oh... by the way. You're going to want to report your car stolen in five hours." Jackson says without giving her any information beyond that.

~36 Hours Later~

Jackson was driving through the the desert on his way back from Phoenix, Arizona at a very high rate of speed. Ramona's little car was handling very well under the adverse conditions that he had put it through. There were currently at least sixteen single bullet holes in the body, the drivers side rear window and very rear window were shattered and a bunch of buckshot riddled the left side of the car. Jackson had taken Ramona's car to Phoenix to deal with a very personal matter. The matter in question, his ex-fiance was getting married and Jackson had to see her one last time before she said her "I do's."

To say Chloe Donovan was surprised to see him after a three year absence was an understatement but it was a necessary one Jackson felt. Now that he was no longer with the agency Jackson felt the need to resolve all the issues that broke them up. Chloe looked very much the same Jackson noted, same beautiful features. Long dark blonde (almost brown) hair, her blue eyes still sparkled. Chloe was at the apartment that she would be vacating once she married her husband the next day. All of her things were packed and her family would once more be moving her out, only this time it was to her new home and hopefully for good. Jackson knew she was here to pick up the few things she needed for the following day before she headed off to the hotel she was to be married at.

When Chloe turned on the lights to her apartment she failed to notice Jackson sitting on her couch in the living room. She was so deep in thought with last minute wedding stuff that she didn't know he was there until he called out to her. "Chloe." Jackson said.

The five foot three inch girl stopped in her tracks and turned to the voice calling her name. She was absolutely stunned. "Jackson... what... what are you doing here? How did you get in my apartment?" She asked her ex-fiance.

"I picked the lock." Jackson says showing her his lock picks.

"So... you go three years without even a hello and decide to show up the night before I am to be married. You'll forgive me if I'm not a tad bit defensive." Chloe states for the record.

"I gave you what you told me you wanted. You said you wanted a clean break. We did. I didn't stalk you in any way shape or form... despite the fact I could easily have done so without you ever even knowing." Jackson informs his ex-fiance.

"Oh really..."

"I just came to say hello, to congratulate you on your upcoming nuptials to say that I am very happy for you. I also wanted to give you the answer to some six year old questions after which I will leave with the intent never to bother you again." Jackson tells her.

"How did you find me then? You never came over here and I never left you a forwarding address." Chloe tells Jackson.

"Why don't you have a seat and I will tell you everything you would ever want to know about Jackson Fuller that I never told you while we were together." Jackson says patting the couch.

Chloe is skeptical but decides to sit on the couch next to Jackson. Jackson sees he has her full attention so he begins. "I want you to know the whole story, some of what I am going to tell you has only come to light in recent months, but given our past and that you know most of the key players, you deserve to know the whole truth about me and what ended us."

"Ok." Chloe says as she leans back against the arm of her couch.

"I told you when we ran into each other six years ago that I was a tech consultant. That I had been for six years at that point and enjoyed my job. That was not one-hundred percent honest." Jackson states.

"I kind of guessed that part around the time we were breaking up." Chloe informs Jackson.

"So... let's go back to the very beginning. As you are aware 12 years ago I was dating Rocki Mahan. We had dated while in high school and were non-exclusively dating in college. Immediately after she and I had our less than acrimonious breakup I left my family and friends and decided to leave San Francisco for parts unknown to them. What I never told them or anyone else until recently is that I did not take a plain and simple IT job, I join the CIA." Jackson informed Chloe.

"The CIA?" Chloe repeated.

"The Central Intelligence Agency, yes that CIA. After I went through and passed their field training program I became a logistics and technology support specialist for one of their more clandestine departments."

"What..."

"I was a spy and a hacker. I worked both behind a desk and in the field. All of those business trips I went on from time to time were missions outside the United States dealing with some very undesirable people." Jackson tells her.

"So you were in the CIA for six years prior to us being together... and you were an active agent the entire time we were a couple?" Chloe asks trying to wrap her had around this story.

"Correct." Jackson tells her. "I never told you this for two reasons. Reason 1, there was an actual clause in my contract that I can only tell my legally married spouse the truth about my job. Which is why I told you the night we ended things if you wanted to know what was going on we had to go get married. I didn't want to have to force your hand like that, but at the time I was given semi-regular polygraph tests to determine if I had divulged any information about my job to anyone so I had to make the demand."

"And the second reason?" Chloe asks.

"I'm going to jump ahead a moment and tell you that I recently returned home and upon so had a lengthy discussion with my mother and learned about your call to her. I say this because I want to be clear when I say that after joining the CIA I wanted to keep my work life as far away from my personal life as possible. That was the primary reason I didn't conjure up additional lies about what I did during my day. I hated keeping you in the dark, but even if we were married, I never would talk about my work life with you because I would be afraid of what I might think is unimportant getting you hurt... or worse." Jackson says.

"So you've been keeping tabs on me then?" Chloe asks Jackson. He can hear the attitude in her question.

"I looked in on you from time to time using my computer. I never liked how things ended between us. I really did love you Chloe. At the time I wanted to spend my life loving you and building a life with you." Jackson informed her.

"Jackson... you had this whole other life... how could you keep that from me?" Chloe asked still in shock over all the details that she had learned.

"I didn't have a choice Chloe." Jackson states.

"Yes you did... you could have quit." Chloe says.

"Yes... I could have. But you never even asked me to consider it." Jackson countered.

"Because... I was afraid to." Chloe replied.

"Why would you be afraid to ask me to quit?" Jackson wondered.

"I... I was afraid you would say yes..." Chloe started, "and then realize that you made a mistake choosing me over your job."

"If you had asked me at that time to chose between you and my job I would have had no regrets in choosing you." Jackson tells her wholeheartedly.

Chloe turned away from Jackson at his admission. For a year prior to her breakup Chloe had tried to conjure up the courage to ask him to quit the company he worked for and find something local, something that wouldn't have him trotting around the globe for weeks at a time.

"I'm sorry that we ended the way we did, you deserved the best. I know you have long since moved on, I just want you to be happy, that's all I ever wanted. There was a point in time I wished it was me that would be bringing you that happiness, I'm sorry that it wasn't." Jackson says.

"I'm sorry too. You know I can't see you anymore." Chloe states for the record.

"I know, in fact you will never see me again and I won't be looking in on you... ever." Jackson promises Chloe.

"So wait... if your contract says you can't tell anyone you're not married to, why are you telling me this now?" Chloe wonders aloud.

"About a month and a half ago I was... lets say let go from my job. I am now a target of opportunity for various assassins and rogue agents." Jackson tells her.

"So you came to see me? How could you do that? What if you were followed?" Chloe screams her question.

"Don't kid yourself Chloe... they've been staking your home since I was let go on the off chance that I would show up here. I took out four men that were staking out your apartment complex waiting for you to return." Jackson informs her.

"Oh my god..l what am I going to do?" She asks her ex-fiance.

"I'm going to finish my story, I'm going to leave you your wedding present and then you're going to call 911 and report a break in. As they pull up I will exit firing some shots in the air and you are going to hide in your closet. The attention it will bring will be enough to keep most of the spooks away from you for the foreseeable future."

"So what did you do for the three years after we broke up?" Chloe inquired.

"Very little outside of my job. My heart just wasn't into trying to find another miss right. I had already failed twice, so I wasn't anxious for a third failure. I threw myself into my work. One day I found something I wasn't supposed to, told the wrong person about it and eventually I ended up fired and now here I am."

"What about the part about your mom? You kind of glossed over that." Chloe points out.

"I did. So, after my tenure with the CIA came to an end I became very popular with those unsavory individuals. I had to fight my way out of a bad situation which earned me three broken ribs and a gash in my skull that took thirteen stitches. After I made my escape on a motorcycle the group that were running me down got lucky and scored two hits to my right shoulder blade." Jackson removes his coat and pulls his t-shirt up and shows Chloe the bullet scars on his shoulder.

Chloe hesitantly ran her fingers over Jackson's scars. She didn't realize she was holding her breath until she moved her hand from his back.

"I almost crashed the bike but managed to survive long enough to get a reprieve because I had threatened to release sensitive documents to the public and my old boss couldn't take that risk at that time so he called off the hit. I was in San Francisco so I went to the one place in the entire city I knew I would be safe... my mother's home. I made it though the doorway before I collapsed in her arms."

"And here you are." Chloe says.

"Yes. I just really wanted you to know what was going on and that I am sorry we didn't work out. I hope you and your future husband have an amazing life together." Jackson tells Chloe.

He gets up and Chloe stands with him. The two hold hands and walk to the closet at the back of the living room. Jackson pulls out an automatic knife, its still sheathed in its housing. He then pulls out an envelope from his coat.

"I hope you like the card. Your wedding gift is inside." Jackson tells her. "I'm sorry I have to make a bit of a mess, but it's for your own good." Jackson gives Chloe a kiss, one like they use to share. Chloe wraps her arms around Jackson and deepens the kiss for a minute before backing away.

She takes one last look at Jackson, blows him one last kiss, and then buries herself in her closet behind her coats and calls 911 while Jackson unsheathes his knife and cuts into the boxes and begins tossing things about to make it look like a break in. Chloe captures the noise on the phone selling her distress to the 911 operator. Jackson departs when he hears the sound of a siren in the distance. He makes his way to Ramona's car and like he expected, he has several people on his tail that are not law enforcement officers. The group open fire on the car immediately and riddle it with various caliber rounds. The police pull up, order the men to drop their weapons but none do. Jackson peels out, the rubber of the tires squeals as he takes his foot of the break and is off like a shot. Jackson looks at the review mirror and see's the sign saying that he is leaving Phoenix, Arizona. A good part of his life was here, and a part of him was sad that Chloe would never be a part of his life again, but it was for the best. Adjusting the rearview mirror, Jackson drives towards home. He had to ditch Ramona's car at some point before he returned to San Francisco. He wondered what kind of car Ramona had purchased or would be purchasing in the near future.

To Be Continued


	4. New Friends

AN: Casting: Jessica Matthews: Rowan Blanchard, Senator Matthews: Will Patton, The Heart breaker: Colton Haynes

Chapter 4: New Friends

It was a beautiful sunny Sunday early afternoon in Lafayette Park in San Francisco. The sun was shining, the clouds were white, the temperature was 80 degrees with a nice cool breeze blowing through the park as Jessica Matthews sat on the park bench watching her six year old son running around playing with some of the other children his age. The air was blowing her long dark brown hair just enough that she had to tuck the left side behind her back and moved her right bangs that had flown in front of her brown eyes. She looked at her son and smiled as the little guy ran from two young girls and their brother. He was ever so happy as they chased after him trying to tag him. Jessica loved her son Brandon Matthews dearly. The hardest thing to come to terms with was that he looked more and more like his father with every passing day.

"You're a very proud mother." A voice announced bringing Jessica out of her little world.

"What?" Jessica asked not ever realizing that someone had parked themselves on her bench.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I didn't realize you had not seen me sit down." The stranger said. He was handsome, pale Caucasian, with dark brown hair like hers. He was dashingly handsome Jessica thought to herself.

"No, I"m sorry I guess I was just so lost in my own thoughts, you just took me by surprise." The single mother announced.

"Jackson Fuller, pleased to meet you." Jackson declared extending his hand to the younger woman.

"Hi, my name is Jessica Matthews." Jessica returned Jackson's handshake.

"Nice to meet you Jessica. How old is your son?" Jackson asked.

"His name is Brandon and he just turned six this month." Jessica proudly announced. Jessica took a look around and didn't happen to see a child that really looked like they belonged to Jackson. "Which child is yours?" Jessica asked her new acquaintance.

"Actually, none. I came here because I needed to speak with you." Jackson announced.

"Me?" Jessica says in an inquisitive tone. She is completely caught off guard by this Jackson's statement. "Why would you need to speak with me? I'm a no body." Jessica said scooting away from Jackson. The conversation was starting to worry her.

"You're hardly a nobody Miss Mathews. Actually I'm here because I need your help. I really need to meet with your father, Senator Jonathan Matthews. Unfortunately trying to get a meeting with him takes an act of god these days and I'm a bit pressed for time." Jackson informed Jessica Matthews.

When Jackson moved Jessica caught a glimpse of the butt of the pistol that Jackson had in his shoulder holster. She actually felt the color drain from her face and her heart stop momentarily. She slowly began reaching for her cellphone.

Jackson read the look of concern on Jessica's face and realized that Jessica had seen his weapon. He could see that she had placed her left hand in her coat pocket and could only guess she was going either for a weapon or her phone. "Jessica, I'm not here to hurt anyone, nor do I have a grudge against your family. In fact, in exchange for your father's help I can help you with an issue that you have been unable to resolve for over six years." Jackson announced.

"Really, and what is that?" Jessica asks unconvinced of Jackson sincerity.

"I can find and deliver to you your son's father." Jackson stated matter-of-factually.

Jessica's poker face kind of dissolved at Jackson's statement. "What... what makes you think I don't know where his father is. Who are you exactly?" Jessica was becoming riled up by the man besides her.

"As I said, my name is Jackson Fuller. I use to work for the CIA and among other things it was my job to find people that didn't want to be found all over the world." Jackson tells Jessica. Jackson shifts his shoulder and moves his satchel into his lap. With both hands where she can see them Jackson reaches slowly into the satchel and pulls out an iPad Pro. Jackson enters the security code to unlock the device and hands it to Jessica. The screen comes to life and up pops a photo of a man that she has not seen in six and a half years.

"Go ahead, swipe left." Jackson tells Jessica.

The younger woman does as instructed and she sees the same man in various shots. The time stamps are all from the previous week. "I don't believe this." Jessica says. "He... he disappeared shortly after I became pregnant... I've been looking for him since the day he disappeared, how did you find him, or better still, how did you even know I was looking for him?" Jessica asks Jackson.

Jackson pulls out a pre-paid cellphone from his satchel and promptly hands it to Jessica. "I can and will answer all of your questions when you get me a meeting with your father. My number is the only one programmed into that phone." Jackson pauses before adding, "You may even learn answers to questions you didn't even know you had." Jackson informs the senators daughter.

Brandon Matthews began calling for his mother at that moment. Jessica turned her attention to the little boy that was happily running up to her. Jackson took that as his cue to leave. He said goodbye to Jessica and casually stood up and walked away from the mother and son.

It was Wednesday and three whole days had passed before the burner phone that Jackson was carrying rang. He looked at the phone number and smiled that it was the call he had anxiously been expecting since Sunday. "Hello." Jackson Fuller answered.

"Hi, this is Jessica, Jessica Matthews." The voice on the other end informed him.

"Hello Jessica, I was hoping you would call me." Jackson told the younger woman.

"My father is a very busy man, but I had him clear his schedule for two hours this afternoon. I will text you our address, come at 3pm." Jessica tells Jackson.

"3pm, I will be there." Jackson replied before hanging up. Jackson knew he couldn't show up looking like a scrub so he pulled out his white dress shirt, gray suit pants and coat. He put on a black tie, grabbed a brief case and sunglasses and made his way up the stairs to the main floor. As it was the middle of the day there was no one else home so he simply walked out the back door, locked it and set the alarm for the house (he had installed it shortly after moving in).

Jackson used his access to the Gibbler/Guerrero house via the gated fence to slip out of his house unnoticed and then jumped their back fence into the adjourning neighbor's yard. Jackson then darted across their lawn and walked six blocks to the garage space he was renting out. He entered the code for the garage and when the door finished rising Jackson was standing in front of his new Acura NSX. Since the day Rocki purchased the car for him (with his money) the only driving he had done in it was to a parking garage to store it until he could find a safe place to store it while not in use. Jackson purchased this car for its speed and agility, which for him were necessities these days. While the NSX was not a great everyday, car as it drew a great deal of attention, it was very handy for days like today when one needed to make an impression. Once he had found a safe location to store the vehicle when he wasn't using it he moved the car and in his (abundant) spare time began modifying the car to his liking. He customized the shocks, replaced the tires, installed custom electronic systems and an ignition switch so the driver had to put in a code to start the car.

Jackson climbed into the drivers seat, inserted the key and input the code that allowed him to activate the car. The engine came to life and Jackson shifted into first gear and was off. Jackson lowered the convertible roof and felt the wind blow through his hair. It was nice to be able to drive himself as opposed to having to take the bus or rely on family and friends to motor him around the city. Jackson pulled up to the senator's home at quarter to three. He pulled his car along the entrance and pressed the buzzer button to alert security to his presence. The guards had to be buzz him through the gate after driving through the iron structure pulled up to the front of the Matthews home at ten minutes to three. Jackson exited his car, went to the trunk and after opening the hatch pulled out his briefcase. He then walked to the front door and while he waited to be let in unbuttoned the two buttons on his coat. He knew that he would be searched before he was allowed to see the senator so he went about making it easy for the guards to see he didn't have any firearms at his shoulders or on a hip holsters. The security guards then ran a metal detector wand over Jackson and found nothing.

Jessica was in the foyer watching the security team do their job. She saw that Jackson was very cooperative and that the only items he brought with him into the house were a briefcase, an iPad, and a folder marked classified. Sealing his case, Jackson walked over to Jessica and greeted the younger woman.

"Follow me please." Jessica insisted.

Jackson followed three steps behind Jessica as they moved to the left side of the house. When Jessica opened the door it led to a very large study. In the study were two very large men. Jackson could see the outline of shoulder holsters under their right arms so he immediately knew they were armed and that they could handle themselves. Jackson would expect nothing less. Jackson now stood in front of an older gentleman, he knew from the mans campaign photographs that he was indeed the senator.

"Senator Matthews, its a pleasure to meet you." Jackson greeted the older man.

The senator stood about an inch shorter than Jackson's five foot eleven inches tall. His forehead was pronounced and his hair was starting to turn from blonde to grey. If he were to guess based on what he was seeing before him Jessica must take after her mother because he saw very little of him in her.

"So Mr Fuller, my daughter says that you needed to speak with me. That you need my help and in exchange for that help you will help my daughter with the issue of her baby daddy." The senator stated.

"To be perfectly honest senator my offer for assistance extends to you as well. I need help, the kind that only you can provide but whether you know it or not yet, you need my help as well." Jackson Fuller announced.

"Exactly what kind of help do you need and what are you offering in exchange." The senator asks humoring Jackson.

"I know your time is precious so I'll just give you the summary version. I use to be a logistics and cyber support specialist for the CIA. Two months ago I was burned for digging into operations involving assets that I supervised in the field operating on US soil." Jackson informs the senator.

"Impossible. The CIA is not chartered to operate domestically." The senator states.

"I agree, and when I brought this to my directors attention I was told to mind my pay grade. So, I initiated my own investigation into these events. I won't bore you with the hows and whys I will just say that I have digital and hard copies of this information. However, during my digging I came across an operative in the directors files known as The Heartbreaker. The director uses him on targets, primarily female targets. Based on his operation files he either cleans out their accounts, feeds them false information to discredit them, break up happy couples for specified outcomes or even discredit elected officials." Jackson says emphasizing that last one.

"Cross checking the director's operational notes against the Heartbreaker's mission log I cam across this interesting operation." Jackson said handing the senator his iPad.

The senator put his glasses on and read the text before him. When he was done the senator dropped the tablet on his desk and it made a rather loud thud, fortunately Jackson had the device in a protective case.

"Jessica, you may want to take a look at that." Jackson informed the young woman. Jessica picked up the table and after the screen re-orientated for how she was holding it and proceeded to read the passage that her father had.

"Oh my god." Jessica said as her had came up to her mouth. "Wha... why? Why would they do this to me?" Jessica asks reading the passage again.

"Ironically I can answer that question with first hand knowledge. Your father was part of a committee that was in charge of the budget for the department of Domestic Operations and Clandestine Affairs, and they were going to cut the departments budget by half. However the vote was scheduled for after any new senators would have taken office. So the Director placed a candidate that would vote in favor of raising the budget for his departments operations." Jackson explained.

"But my dad won his re-election campaign." Jessica adamantly stated.

"Yes he did, but just barely. A certain scandal all but derailed his campaign last time... right?" Jackson asks Jessica.

Jessica slowly began filling in the blanks. "My pregnancy."

"Indeed. The director had his operative seduce you with the intent to impregnate you. Your father's platform for years had been family first. The idea that his sixteen yar old underage, unwed daughter getting pregnant, it almost destroyed him." Says Jackson.

"But it didn't." The senator stated.

"No, because the media learned that your opponent was a monster. An underage mistress, several children by women not his wife. He also had ties to that Epstein case from ages past. It was a last minute Hail Mary play but it kept you in the senate." Jackson informed all present.

"You're saying you are responsible for leaking that information? Why would you do that if your department was going to be affected by the budget cuts?"

"At that time that operation was going on I was following your daughter's story. I saw how the media was crucifying you both so I looked into it. I wasn't aware of the role the Heartbreaker was playing in the director's operations at that time or I would have handed him over years ago. However I did know that someone in the agency was protecting your opponent because I found his dirty little secrets far to easily. A high school reporter, particularly a pretty young girl would have uncovered the truth about him in one interview, he was that scummy."

"So what is it that you want from me, and what do you want in return?" The senator asks Jackson Fuller and the young man sits back in the chair and places his hands behind his head.

To Be Continued...


	5. The Heartbreaker

Chapter 5: The Heartbreaker

~Saturday Evening~

Cameron Banks, or at least that's what his passport said his name was, awoke to find himself zip tied to a chair. As his whits began returning he tried his best to figure out where he was and what was going on. As he shook his head the last thing he remembered was entering the flat belonging to his current girlfriend. Marie and himself had just come from an intimate dinner for two only for both of them to find a man sitting in the dark with a gun pointed in their direction. A red dot appears on Cameron's chest right over his heart and the voice instructs his girlfriend to close the door quietly and not make any sounds or her lover is dead. When she complies his next instructions were for the couple to sit on the couch with their hands on their legs. Any sudden moves will be met with lethal force. The couple did as instructed and moved slowly and cautiously so as not to make the dark figure carry out his threat. They could not see the man's face as the lights were off his features were being obscured by the darkness. All that was visible was his silhouette and the red light emitted by his laser sight. Cameron's girlfriend spoke first and offered the man a thousand dollars cash, which was all she had on her but the unseen man says he doesn't want money. He tells Cameron that its time for him to reap what he's sown. The figure fires the weapon at Cameron. It doesn't make the sound a normal pistol does, it is very silent and the round strikes the side of Cameron's neck. The girlfriend watches as Cameron's eyes rolled into his head and the last thing he remembered was falling over into her lap.

He had no idea how long he had been out or where her was but as he struggled against his bonds he realized rather quickly that even if he were to free one of his limbs he had no idea how to completely free himself before his captor returned. Each of his limbs were individually bound and he even had belts securing his upper torso to the bars on the chair so he was completely immobilized. From the limited movement he had Cameron could see he was in a one room shack. He didn't hear any noise from the outside and the walls looked wooden so he assumed he was in a cabin located in the woods somewhere.

"He's finally awake." The voice of the shadow man from before announced from behind him. Cameron did not recognize it but he decided to play cool and act like he was just coming to his faculties.

"You're a very difficult man to track down when you don't want to be found." The voice tells Cameron. "Fortunately for me, I know where you get you're money from so it was considerably easier for me to do so." The voice informs Cameron.

"My associate here however has been looking for you for quite some time... haven't you?" The voice asks an unseen associate.

Cameron hears the floorboards squeak and which is followed by heavy footsteps on those same wooden floorboards. The lighting only allowed him to see the silhouette of a slim woman with flowing long hair before him.

"Marie?" Cameron called out to the figure.

"You wish." The female voice in the shadows before him says.

Cameron's heart actually stopped for a moment. Impossible... It couldn't be her... Cameron thought to himself. From out of the shadows walked a very stern looking Jessica Matthews. She was six years older than the last time Cameron had seen her. Jessica's hips were wider, her bust larger but he noticed that she still had her slim figure, despite him knowing full well what had happened to her since the last time he saw her. He quickly tried to remember everything that occurred six years prior and how he could try and get her back on his side.

"Jessica..." But before he could continue she pulled back her right arm and let it fly square across his face with an extremely loud SMACK. Cameron was hit so hard his head flew to the right.

"You... you son of a bitch. You seduced me, you used me, and then you left me with a baby. All to try and destroy my father's reputation..." Jessica yelled at the man before her. "I don't know how you live with yourself, how you do the things you do, but I guarantee you, you won't be doing them to another woman again."

"I don't know what you're talking about Jessica. I... I was abducted. I thought it was your father behind it all. He never did like me." Cameron told the younger woman. "I was taken to an isolated spot somewhere in the woods... if the two guys that nabbed me hadn't been amateurs I never would have managed to get away." Cameron in his guise as Chase Richards.

"I had an interesting chat with Marie Travers... Cameron. That is what you're calling yourself these days, Cameron Banks. I thought you made a fine Chase Richards, or do you prefer Ryan Bennett, maybe James Fawkes, how about Trevor Moore... shall I continue?" Jessica asks.

When the Heartbreaker says nothing Jessica moved to the right and the lights behind her came to life in the small cabin. There was a large flat screen tv with a camera mounted on top. Jessica presses the power button on the remote and the TV and video camera come to life. The Heartbreak watches as the camera moves about to focus in on him. His image is displayed in full high definition on the television before him. Jessica changes the signal source and Cameron watches as the screen goes black and then various images pop up before him. Within two minutes the man currently calling himself Cameron Banks watches as the TV screen fills up with multiple small squares. Each square contains a live video feed of a specific woman from his past. Not all of them mind you, but from what he could see it would be considered a "greatest hits" list.

"Oh shit." The Heartbreaker says aloud.

"In case you're wondering, they can't hear any of this, it gives them plausible deniability about what is coming next. I promised them that they would all have the pleasure of seeing this though." The first voice, the one from behind him announced.

Coming around to face him the man, the one that had shot him earlier, was standing before him. While he never got a clear look at him before he was quite sure by his voice and his silhouette that this was his attacker from Marie's flat. Jessica turned the Heartbreaker's chair forty-five degrees so the ladies could get a good view of him. The Heartbreaker saw the brown haired young man look him square in the eye, then moved with great speed delivering a right cross to his left cheek. Before his head could finish swinging back he felt a second blow and this time could taste some blood in his mouth. The figure let his bound foe's head return to its normal position in time for the unknown male to wind back, and delivered a right cross to the nose of the man in front of him. Cameron's face crunched on impact and his head flew to the right as did the spray of blood from his nose and mouth.

Even though there was no sound Jackson could see the elation on the faces of the women on the screen. Jackson gave the signal to cut the feed and the power went off to the camera, the tv and lights. "I believe the senator and his men have a few more questions for you. I hope you enjoy the remainder of your life... however long that may be." Jackson informs the Heartbreaker.

"Wa... Wha... wat I doth... to u?" The doomed man tries to ask Jackson Fuller through his busted teeth and broken nose.

"February 2025 to May 2025... Southern Illinois University." Jackson states

"Saaaa... soth... " The Hearbreaker started to think back. "R... r... Rky..." The Heartbreaker tried to say.

"Yeah... I broke your nose for her, and because you dragged me into this life of espionage." Jackson says. Stepping away from his injured man Jackson moves over to Jessica, takes her by the arm and begins leading her out of the cabin.

"He's all yours Senator Matthews." Jackson says as he passes the Senator and four of his biggest men just outside the cabin.

The five men enter the cabin and shortly after the door shuts things go quiet. Jackson opens the passenger door for Jessica Matthews and the young woman climbs in and fastens her seat belt. Jackson starts the engine of his blue convertible Acura NSX. Jackson revs the engine of the car and the rumble drowns out the cries of agony that begin to escape the cabin.

The dirt and rocks under the cars tires begin to fly as Jackson shifts from park into first gear and drives away from the local. It is only when they have left the secluded area that the cabin was located at that Jessica asks Jackson to please pull the car over. Jackson slows the car down and brings it to a skidding halt on the side of the two lane road. Jessica exits the car while Jackson shuts down the engine. Jessica is pacing back and forth muttering low so Jackson can't hear her until she finally looses her composure and lets out a loud scream, almost a wail. Jackson allows her to vent and he can see the tears streaming down her face as she begins to cry. After she sobs for several minutes Jackson goes over and wraps his arms around her and does his best to help sooth her as she continues to cry.

"Just let it all out." Jackson says to the young woman.

"I... I hated him for so long..." Jessica says, "First because he left me... later because he used me... but even now with it all being over... I still hurt. I thought... I hoped I would feel..." She explains.

"Relief?" Jackson asks. Jessica simply nods her head. "I can relate to how you must feel. He's had a power over you for so long... but no more. You helped end his reign of terror on women and you can sleep knowing that he will never hurt another girl or woman like he did you again."

"What... what did he do to you... or who did he hurt that you knew?" Jessica asked Jackson.

"Her name was Roxanne, but she preferred to be called Rocki. We dated in high school but went non-exclusive when she went to college in Southern Illinois University. He was sent by the director of my department to seduce her so that she and I would split up."

"That doesn't make sense... Why did the director send his Heartbreaker after her just to split the two of you up?" Jessica asks him.

"He wanted my skills for his department in the CIA. When the CIA originally came knocking on my door all those years ago I wasn't going to take the job, I had plenty of other offers that were equal in pay and with far less travel. I was just going to stay local, work a simple job, and ask Rocki to marry me." Explained Jackson.

"But how did the Director know that you would join the CIA over a simple breakup? It does seem like a long shot." Questioned Jessica.

"He used my psyche profile. They had me screened prior to approaching me so they knew that pain of me loosing her in a situation like that would make me want to flee my old life. With the hectic travel schedule I would be on the CIA could give me the distance I craved... and they did. I left my friends, my family, the only home I had ever truly known for twelve years."

"You loved her that much that that the breakup hurt that bad?" Jessica asked.

"I did. In the twelve years that I was gone I only had one serious relationship after Rocki. I actually proposed to her but when my work life started becoming an issue it drove a huge wedge between us. It's actually one of the main reasons I would never go back to government work." Jackson informed Jessica.

"I'm so sorry." Jessica says resting her head on Jackson's left shoulder.

"Come on, let me get you back to your son. I'm sure he's missing his mom right about now." Jackson says to the young single mother.

The drive back to her home was silent for the remainder of the trip but occasionally as he drove Jackson would catch Jessica looking at him. She would turn away when she thought he was going to catch her eye but she could not hide the blush that would creep up her face when he did this. Jackson arrived some time later at the front door to the Matthews family home and Jackson shifted into park. Jessica decided to be fairly bold and leaned over and gave Jackson a five second kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you... for everything." Jessica says in almost a sultry tone.

"You're welcome. Have a good night." Jackson says.

Jackson decides to be the gentleman his mother raised him to be and exits his car, opens the door for Jessica and then escorts her to her front door. Jessica wishes Jackson a safe drive home as the door to her home separates them. Jackson returns to his car and once he has fastened his seat belt shifts the car into first gear and drives off.

~Two Weeks Later~

The once broken form of the Heartbreaker, whose real name was actually Edgar Richards sat in an undisclosed location healing from the wounds inflicted on him two weeks prior. His nose had been reset, his bruises were healing and nothing besides his nose had been broken. He had been tortured for some time, but there were other ways of hurting people that didn't require physical damage to the person's body, as Edgar quickly learned.

He was secured by restraints to a bed and had three guards with him at almost all times. One guard changed shifts every six hours and Edgar had counted at least eighteen different men. He also noted that which ever guard assisted his nurse was unarmed during any physical exchanges in case he somehow managed to free himself.

"Well now, you seem to be healing quite nicely." Senator Matthews says as he looks over the chart with the latest on Edgar's recovery.

"Why am I still alive." Edgar asks the senator.

"Ohhh that's a simple answer. You don't just divest yourself of an asset as valuable as yourself for something as petty as simple vengeance. Oh no, you're worth far more alive to be used against your former director than as a corpse. However, if you don't cooperate, then we can always make sure that your end is long, drawn out, and extremely painful. Do I make myself clear son?" Senator Matthews asks the man that basically raped his daughter.

"We are clear as crystal." Edgar says. "With the understanding that you don't just kill me when this is all over.

"You do your part, and you get to walk away. It's that simple." The senator tells the father of his grandson.

To Be Continued


	6. DJ's Birthday Extravaganza

It was February 11, 2037 and DJ was celebrating her 57th birthday. The family had gathered once again at the family home to celebrate the occasion. All of the usual guest were invited and for the first time in 12 years DJ had all of her family present, well, Jackson was not here at the moment, but he was on his way as he said he had to pick something up before the party. Max and his younger brother Tommy were helping Ramona and Rocki place the table cloths while Stephanie and Kimmy were bringing the food out. Jimmy and Fernando were on their way from Uncle Monty's with sandwiches which just left Steve on the grill. The Harmon family would be joining them shortly as well.

"How is it the first year he's here in 12 years that Jackson is missing during the setup." Tommy Fuller asks his older brother.

"Oldest brother privilege... how should I know. I still don't know what it is he does when I'm at work and you're at school." Max informs the youngest Fuller.

"It's better not to wonder guys." Ramona informs her surrogate brothers.

"Why Ramona? Do you know what he's getting up to." Tommy asks.

"Jackson is just being Jackson." Ramona states trying to sidestep her slip of the tongue.

"What does that even mean anymore though Ramona. He's been gone so long I don't really know him anymore. He's nothing like I remember." Tommy Fuller informs his sister.

"Ramona, I've known him longer that Tommy, heck I lived in the same room as him for six years and even I don't know my brother any more." Max states.

"People change Max. I know that better than anyone." Rocki says with a touch of sadness in her voice. "Just be happy that your mom is content to have her entire family whole again and leave it at that."

The sound of a roaring flame and meat hitting the grill brought an end to the seriousness of the conversation between the Fullers, Ramona and Rocki. The boys went over to watch their stepfather cook to get a few tips from him while Rocki and Ramona sat down at the far end of the yard.

"Nice slip up there Ramona." Rocki stated.

"I'm sorry, it just... came out. I still have trouble trying to forgot what we saw the other day." Ramona whispered.

"I don't know what you're referring to." Rocki said trying to deflect the topic so Ramona wouldn't think about it.

"Right... I don't know what I'm talking about either." Ramona says changing the topic.

DJ came out of the house and walked right over to her hubby and gave him a hug and a kiss. "Food's looking good hunny." DJ compliments her husband.

Matt and Gia arrived with the cake that the group had gotten for DJ and placed it on the table with all the food. Steve had cooked a serving of hot dogs, chicken legs and hamburgers that had the group salivating. DJ was about to call Jackson to see what was keeping him when he made his way into the backyard. To the surprise of everyone he was not alone.

"Hi." The little boy with Jackson Fuller announced as everyone present was staring at the trio. Brandon Matthews took two more steps and waved at everyone as everyone began waving back at him.

"Hiiiiiii." The woman skeptically stated as she stood besides Jackson. The group continued to stare at Jackson and his two guests for several moments until Jackson decided to resolve the situation and said, "Everyone this is Jessica Matthews and her adorable son Brandon Matthews.

Jackson led the pair over to his family, "This is my mother Donna Jo Hale, but everyone calls her DJ... except my brothers and I, we call her mom." Brandon held out his hand and shook DJ's hand. DJ politely greeted little Brandon.

"This is Steve, he is my stepfather." Jackson continued. Jackson went around introducing the two until he reached the final two people in the yard. "Brandon this is Ramona Gibbler. We grew up in this house together and she's like a sister to me." Jackson explained. "Our mothers are best friends so we've known each other our entire lives."

"And who are you?" Brandon asked the last girl in the yard.

"My name is Roxanne, but people call me Rocki, with and I not a y." Rocki informs the little boy. She shakes his hand and Brandon smiles at her.

"Rocki... Rocki Mahan?" Brandon's mother questions as she looks to Jackson.

"The one and only." Rocki said with pride and skepticism.

"I've heard of you... I just didn't know I would be meeting you... ever." Jessica informed Jackson's ex-girlfriend.

"I work with my father and Jackson's mother as a vet at Harmon & Hale Pet Clinic." Rocki explained.

"Really... something else I was completely unaware of." Jessica tells Jackson.

Jackson chose to take this opportunity to lead Brandon over to the food table and see what the little guy wanted to eat. DJ got to go first but everyone else let the young boy go second. While Jackson led the young boy down the line Rocki and Jessica began comparing notes and learning more about one another.

"Jessica, you look very familiar." DJ Hale said looking at the younger woman.

"I get that a lot. I am the daughter of Senator Jonathan Matthews." Jessica informs the ladies around her.

"Oh... OH!" Stephanie Gibbler says when she realizes why she recognized Jessica.

"Yes... that Jessica Matthews." Jessica says when Stephanie gave Brandon a look of realization.

"Am I missing something?" Kimmy Gibbler asked the group.

Jessica sighed. "Six years ago, when I was underage I got involved with an older man. He told me I was special. He made me feel special. Not long after that I found out I was pregnant with Brandon."

"Ohhhh." DJ said. She and the other ladies present easily read between the lines of what Jessica was not saying in front of her son.

"Yes. It was a huge scandal because my father's whole platform was family. So when I, his at the time underage, unwed daughter became pregnant it was a huge issue." Jessica explained.

"Sooo how did you meet Jackson?" Rocki asked matter-of-factually.

"Actually, he was instrumental in helping me track down the man that had almost ruined my father's political career, Brandon's biological dad." Jessica whispered that last part so as not to gain her son's attention.

"Jackson helping someone besides himself... that's new." Max Fuller said.

"I've only known him a short time, but he has been very helpful. After we resolved the issue with Brandon's dad he helped me work through my personal issues over the situation, and we started spending time together. He's been a good friend and a wonderful influence on Brandon." Jessica informs DJ. "My dad is so busy that Brandon has never really had a male role model, he looks up to Jackson."

"DJ, do we have anymore hot dogs?" Steve asks his wife.

"We have two more packs in the refrigerator. DJ informs Steve.

"I'll go get them for you Steve." Rocki says as she stands and makes her way to the kitchen in a haste. Once the back door is shut Rocki slowly makes her way to the refrigerator. She is not looking forward to going back out there and listening to a woman younger than Max going on about how great Jackson is. Sure, she knows Jackson can be great but it's still rough hearing another woman going on and on and on about it. Grabbing the hot dogs she turned around and found Jessica was sitting down at the Fuller Hale's table.

"Rocki, I was hoping you and I could have a little chat." Jessica says to Rocki.

"I'm not in a very chatty mood." Rocki says. "Besides, I have to run this outside."

"I think you'll want to hear what I have to say. Unless you don't want to know about the man that trampled on your heart and broke you and Jackson up." Jessica tells Rocki.

"What could you possibly know about that... besides Jackson's one sided perspective of those events." Rocki informs the younger woman.

"I guess you'll have to come back in and find out, or not. It's entirely up to you." Jessica says.

Rocki brought the two packages of hot dogs out to Steve who immediately began cooking them for the group. Rocki contemplated what she wanted to do but knew that she had to go back inside the house. She had no idea what Jessica could know besides the picture that Jackson obviously painted of the cheating ex-girlfriend but she sensed there was more to it than that. Taking a deep breath she excused herself and went back into the house to see what this young woman knew.

"I had a feeling you couldn't pass this opportunity up. For the record this is exactly how Jackson approached me. She slid the iPad Jackson usually carried with him to Rocki and showed her the exact pictures that Jackson has shown the day they first met.

"Where did you get these?" Roxanne asks Jessica. She was stunned to see recent images of the man she had left Jackson for.

"From Jackson." Jessica declares.

"Do you know where he got them from." Rocki inquired.

"I don't. I never asked nor did I care when he showed them to me. He told me he could find and deliver him to me. Out of curiosity... what did he tell you his name was?" Jessica asked pointing to the picture of the man on the screen.

"Jason Cameron." Rocki informs the woman.

"Let me take a stab in the dark. After he abruptly disappeared you hired someone to look for Jason, only they hit a dead end. You found out his records were falsified, his fake social media presence deleted as if it were never online, and you could never find a trace of him anywhere else. Sound about right." Jessica tells Rocki.

"How did you know?" Rocki questions Jessica.

"Because I looked for Chase Richards for six and half years with no luck. When Jackson discovered his location he was in the process of seducing an older woman under the name Cameron Blake. Jackson filled a sixty inch monitor full of women who... lets just call him the Heartbreaker, because that's what he was... a cruel sadistic man who made a living destroying the lives of women, young to old, rich and poor alike. As long as they had some kind of strategic value to his boss, he did whatever he was told."

"I don't understand." Rocki says.

"The Heartbreaker... Jason, he worked for the CIA. He was a field agent that specialized in seduction. In my case he was deployed to try and destroy my father's campaign using me as their instrument." Jessica explains.

Rocki asks, "But why would this person want to target me. I'm a nobody. What could anyone possibly..." But then she stops. It is as if she had finally found that last piece of the puzzle that was missing and could complete the pictures.

"I think you have arrived at the destination, so why don't you finish your sentence and see if you're correct." Jessica says.

"The CIA wanted Jackson. They wanted Jackson's skills so much that they actually hired someone to split us apart to get Jackson in the right frame of mind that he would leave the area and join their organization." Rocki says.

"Well, I'd say my work is done." Jessica says to Rocki. "Having been where you are, I know you're going though a whole gambit of emotions... if you want you can talk to me about it as I have a unique insight into your situation." Jessica left Jackson's iPad on the table, patted Rocki's shoulder and returned to the party. Rocki sat looking at the image on the screen until the iPad went to sleep. She then got up and rejoined the party herself.

Jackson Michael Fuller was resting in the basement apartment of his family home. His mother had enjoyed meeting Jessica and Brandon, noting that it had been ages since anyone so young had been in their home. After Jackson had driven Brandon and Jessica to their home Jackson returned to the safety of his basement. Immediately upon walking into the kitchen he was greeted by the birthday girl herself. Surprisingly it was just her, waiting for him. As Jackson had suspected DJ was waiting to talk to him to ask her son about the nature of his relationship with Jessica. Jackson had simply stated that he had started spending time with Jessica and Brandon. He also informed his mother that the senator was helping him with his situation.

"Just so I'm clear... you're not seeing her just because you need her father's help?" DJ asked.

"No. She's very nice, and I've really grown quite fond of her. The fact that her father can help him is just a bonus." Jackson explained.

"Ok Jackson. Just tread carefully. Jessica is still a young woman, one who has had to carry a heavy burden from a very young age. But it's obvious to anyone with eyes that she has feelings for you." DJ states.

"Honestly mom. We're just friends." Jackson replies.

"Still, she is cute." DJ reminds her son.

"Yes mom, I do have eyes." Jackson states.

DJ says goodnight to her son and gives him a kiss. She thanks him for being here for her birthday and heads up to her bedroom.

Jackson closed his eyes and started thinking about all of the major recent events. Getting burned, barely escaping an execution, blackmailing his old boss, seeing Chloe again, getting even with the man that led to his current situation, life was not great but it had gotten better. As he continued to think about his life Jackson heard footsteps on the steps to his basement. Jackson had gotten his family and those closest to him that visited to announce their presence before they entered the basement. As this person didn't Jackson opened his right eye and pulled the Walther CCP that he kept in his pillow. He pointed it at the figure and turned on the laser aiming module at the spot where the unknown person would be in two steps. Rocki froze as she found herself staring down the barrel of a 9mm handgun. Jackson turned off the LAM and put it back in his pillow when he saw his ex-girlfriend raise her hands.

"Something I can help you with?" Jackson asked Rocki as he closed his open eye.

"We need to talk." Rocki says coming all the way into Jackson's room. "I want to know how long you've known about this... Heartbreaker character?" Rocki asks in response to Jackson's question.

"Mid-January." Jackson answers matter-of-factually.

"You've known about this guy for weeks and you never told me? How could you never mention this to me?" Rocki asks.

"Wow... kind of sucks to be left in a holding pattern for weeks... doesn't it." Jackson says.

"Twelve years, you're still holding a grudge for twelve years." Rocki states.

"No, I told you I forgave you right then and there. However, I do like the irony of our situations being revisited upon you. Remember how after our disastrous first prom when I messed up, apologized, you dumped me despite forgiving me, then years later you leave me hanging for three months before you drop me. You messed up, I forgave you and now you're mad because I withheld information from you for considerably less time." Jackson states.

"What's this about you actually finding the guy, this Heartbreaker." Questions Rocki.

"He's been found and dealt with by Jessica's father. I don't know anymore than that nor do I want to." Jackson says.

"I thought you were the one that found him." Rocki calls out Jackson.

"I said he was found, which he was and yes I did the finding and collecting. Then I brought him to Jessica so she could have her say, I broke his nose, and then turned him over to the senator to do whatever he wanted with him. I don't think he'll ever seduce another woman again... one way or another." Explained Jackson.

"So you helped her get her revenge, but not me?" Rocki asks.

"I helped Jessica as part of my deal with Jessica's father. Her family got their pound of flesh and I get help in dealing with this burn notice. I'm sorry you didn't get to see what we did or be there to have a go at him but it's done. You can move on now knowing he never loved you, you were just another job to him." Jackson says trying to be reassuring.

"Jackson... about what happened..." Rocki starts to say.

"Stop! I know every sordid detail already. I don't need your take on what happened" Jackson tells Rocki.

"I'm afraid to ask, but I will. How do you know..."

"Heartbreaker's operational reports were very detailed and very through." Jackson tells Rocki.

"I don't know what to say..."

"Goodbye works for me." Jackson tells Rocki.

"Jackson, when did you grow so cold... and don't say twelve years ago." Yells Rocki.

"Look Rocki, I am what you made me." Jackson says getting up in a huff. He closes the distance and is within inches of Rocki's face. "You were the one that taught me about love and you were the one that threw it all away on a whim. I am the monster you created Doctor Frankenstein... Now you live with it!" Jackson is almost yelling now. The only thing keeping him from doing so are the people upstairs trying to sleep.

The two were at a standoff for several tense moments. Neither person said a word or made a move. Finally, Rocki decided to say something but whatever it was never made it past the first syllable because as soon as she opened her mouth Jackson suddenly closed the distance and kisses Rocki. The two stood there, lips pressed together for several awkward moments that seem to go on forever but in reality are only seconds before Rocki's shocked expression melts away and she kisses Jackson back. Rocki had dated over the past twelve years but those dates never really led to a relationship. None of the dates ever made it past second base. Now, the familiarity of her old lover's lips and the feel of his touch on her body when his left hand at the small of her back pulls her body against his and his right comes up to hold her head in place while they kiss slowly stoke the flames that have long since been dormant within her. The two begin to kiss hungrily and their lips separate as Jackson steps back to divest himself of his shirt, a move echoed by Rocki. She then moves her hands behind her back to unhook her bra while Jackson shucks his pants and boxers. Rocki places her hands in the elastic of her panties and slacks and pushes them over her hips until she is as naked as he is.

Rocki is the one that ends up on her back and the two have allowed their baser instincts to take over. Jackson claims Rocki's mouth and she moans into it as Jackson's thick cock thrusts inside her warm fold. She had almost forgotten how good it felt to be loved by him and she spreads her legs as far apart as she can until he is completely buried inside of her. She holds him against her as she once again becomes accustomed to his girth. Her legs wrap around Jackson's hips and her hands hold on to his strong shoulders. Rocki's left hand feel the spot on Jackson's right shoulder where his bullet wounds once were. She kisses the front of his shoulder for now, and moans her approval as Jackson beginnings to pick up the pace and intensity in this thrusts. Rocki only just manages to stifle her release as Jackson drills into her. He fells her walls contracting around him and he holds still as her release was over her. Rocki bites down on Jackson's shoulder as she rides out her orgasm.

Jackson, still hard, flips Rocki over, moves her hair over her left shoulder and begins kissing Rocki down her spine. Rocki shivers as Jackson's lips touch her skin from the top of her neck to the base of her spine. His teeth graze her left butt cheek, followed by her right cheek. He has Rocki climb up on her knees and slowly re-enters his ex-girlfriend. Rocki reaches for Jackson's hands and places them on her breasts and relish the feeling of his strong hands on her breasts. Jackson takes the opportunity to squeeze her handful sized breasts and pinched her nipples between his fingers stimulated her pleasure centers in her chest and down bellow as he thrust his member into her soaked slit. Jackson is grunting as his hips collide against Rocki's butt. Their skin crashing together making a resonating sound in the basement. Rocki grabs Jackson's pillow and screams into his pillow muffling the scream. Jackson member stays lodged within Rocki as it floods Rocki's womb with his life giving essence. When he is finally spent Jackson withdraws from Rocki's folds and drops onto his back besides Rocki. Rocki moves against Jackson and rests her head on Jackson's right shoulder. She kisses Jackson's shoulder, and leans over to kiss his cheek before she snuggles in and drifts off to sleep, truly content for the first time in far too long. A sentiment that Jackson Fuller can echo as his right arm encircles Rocki's waist and his head rests against Rocki's.

To Be Continued


	7. Stumbling Blocks

~ February 15th 2037 ~

It was very early in the morning the day after Valentines Day and Jackson Fuller wished that he was sound asleep at this moment in time, he really did but that is just not possible. His mind and guilty conscience were keeping him up as he continued to think about the situation at hand. Despite his intentions Jackson had tried, he really did try, he told himself to not fall into the trap but no... he fell, hard. As his companion snuggled into his left side, her arm on his check and her leg intertwined with his, Jackson Fuller thought back to the start of this whole situation three days ago.

~ February 12th 2037 ~

Donna Jo Hale walked down the back staircase of her family home. It was the morning after her birthday and the house was silent. Her younger sons were adults, out living on their own now while Jackson was still residing in the basement after his abrupt return. Max had finished his college degree and finished his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. Max was now working at Harmon and Hale Pet Clinic as a vet along side Matt, his mother and Rocki. Matt Harmon and DJ Hale knew that they would be retiring in about eight more years at which time they will turn the practice over to Rocki and Max. Currently with four vets the group now divide their work time more evenly so that not everyone has to be there to open and likewise close. Today was supposed to be Rocki's day to open so DJ got to sleep in till 10am. Steven Hale, had already left the house over an hour prior to DJ waking up as her husband of seventeen years was consulting on a medical case to a younger podiatrist in his practice.

On any normal day DJ would have found Jackson downstairs in the kitchen, coffee made, ready to hand her a cup while they made breakfast and talk before she left to go to the clinic for the day. Today there was no cup, no coffee and no Jackson. She checked the door of the refrigerator and found no note from her son saying he had to leave early (which was his SOP, just so she worried less about whatever he might be doing). DJ went over to the stairs and began calling her son's name, something she had learned to do (and told her family to also do) so Jackson didn't go into survival mode and draw a weapon on an unsuspecting person. She called his name one more time and then descended the stairs to go check on him. DJ took the stairs fairly quickly and when she reached the bottom she stopped in stunned silence as her eyes fell upon the last thing she ever expected to find in her basement.

Jackson was indeed still home and had actually overslept. That in itself was an oddity but what really caught DJ off guard was that he was not alone. Jackson was laying on his back in bed, his navy blue sheet was pulled up to about his chest. He was topless and DJ could clearly see that Jackson was in good physical shape due to his CIA training. To his right, nestled into his chest was her partner's stepdaughter, Roxanne Mahan. The pair were sleeping soundly and had not noticed nor heard DJ's descent into the basement. Based on what DJ could see of Rocki that wasn't covered by the sheet she was guessing that Rocki was completely naked. Rocki's left leg was uncovered and the sheet that was wrapped firmly around her midsection but stopped at her hip and covered up to the center of Rocki's back. Her long black hair was running along her back and she was pressed firmly against Jackson in such a way that he was keeping her front obstructed from DJ's view. DJ also noted that Jackson's had wrapped his right arm around her and was holding her close to his body, almost possessively so DJ noted.

"Jackson... Rocki..." DJ called out to the sleeping couple.

Rocki was the first to realize her name had been called and started to sit up. DJ decided it was best to turn around until Rocki was awake enough to cover up. The younger woman yawned and stretched her arms. The first thing she immediately noticed was that she was naked. Taking in her surroundings she quickly realized that she was still in Jackson's basement. Once her memory finally caught up to her she took notice of the equally naked Jackson Fuller still lying unconscious besides her. With another yawn Rocki looked up and took notice of her boss, Jackson's mother, standing in the room with her back to Rocki.

"Good morning Rocki." DJ announced.

Despite trying to give her young protege some privacy she found this a tad bit difficult as Jackson had placed a mirror near the stairs so DJ caught a glimpse of Rocki's naked form when she stretched. DJ covered her eyes as Rocki grabbed the sheet and covered herself in embarrassment. Rocki then began shaking the unconscious Jackson Fuller until he finally woke up from his first truly restful sleep since his three day nap in the hospital.

"Good morning Rocki, good morning mom." Jackson says as he rubs his eyes with his right hand. His statement actually shocked both women.

"Ummm Jackson, how did you your mom was here?" Rocki asks since Jackson had not yet opened his eyes nor looked in his mother's direction.

"I can smell her perfume." Jackson informs Rocki. He is well aware of the situation but there is no point in making a big production of it. Jackson and Rocki are thirty-four now, not sixteen after all.

"I'm sorry to disturb... this. You're usually up before I am and there was no note so I came down to see if everything was all right." DJ says still not looking at the two lovers. "Ummm Rocki, aren't you supposed to be at the clinic right now?" DJ asked.

"I switched with Max. I knew I would be... talking... to Jackson last night and depending on how the conversation went I didn't think I would be in the right frame of mind to open." Rocki explained.

"So I take it your... conversation... went better than expected." DJ needled the younger woman. She had to admit to herself that she was enjoying making Rocki a bit uncomfortable over this situation.

"Ok mom, that's enough of that. Can you excuses us so we can get dressed." Jackson requested. As if to give his mother a taste of her own medicine, he wrapped his arms around Rocki in a protective and possessive manner. Rocki didn't even realize she was relaxing into Jackson's embrace until after her head was rested agains his chest. The contact with him made her feel whole, and safe.

"Yeah... I'll go make some coffee." DJ said turning away from the former couple before quickly ascending the staircase. When his mother was gone Jackson leaned back against the headboard of his bed, the impact of his head hitting the board made a soft thump.

"That was a fun way to start the day." Rocki said moving besides Jackson. She leaned into him, resting her head on his chest. "So... where do we go from here." Asked Rocki.

"I don't know." Jackson answers her honestly. "As good as we are together we are also great at hurting one another. The last thing I ever want is to bring even more turmoil into your life, which is pretty much how I live these days." Jackson says resting his head against Rocki's.

"Maybe it's what I deserve." Rocki states.

"What do you mean by that?" A perplexed Jackson asks.

"I... I sabotaged our relationship. All those years ago." Rocki explains. "I was scared of the future. I knew I would be returning home, that you would be here waiting for me. Ramona told me that you were so excited for me to come back, she thought you might want to propose to me."

She pauses as she figures out how best to explain the rest. "My mom... my mom... as much as I loved her didn't provide me with the most stable home growing up. She went through three husbands in sixteen years... that's one husband every five years of my life. I didn't want to risk being that kind of woman, most certainly I didn't want us to be a failure. So when... Heartbreaker came along, I let myself fall for him. I never saw a future with him. I just, I was just scared of destroying our future if we were together."

"Rocki, you may be your mother's daughter, but that doesn't mean you have to be exactly like her. You saw all of the mistakes she made, just don't repeat them. The hardest part of marriage that I've seen is always communicating and being open with your partner. As much as I wanted to marry you I would have worked with you, I wouldn't have rushed you to the alter unless that was what you wanted. Marriage is about compromise." Jackson finishes.

"So... where do we go from here?" Rocki asks.

"Let's say friends first, and go from there." Jackson proposes.

"Friends then... we can still make out once and awhile though right?" Rocki asked Jackson much like Jackson once did.

"Sure, why not." Jackson responded much like Rocki did years ago and the two came together in a passionate kiss.

~ February 14th 2037 ~

It was Saturday evening and Jackson Fuller was spending Valentines day with the lovely Jessica Matthews. As Jessica rarely went out on dates due to her lack of faith in men after she had been used and damaged by the father of her baby she took a chance in asking Jackson out for the first time in six years. Jackson generally liked her so he accepted. His plans were fairly simple, dinner at a nice restaurant, maybe a little dancing and take in a few sights before they made their way home. The two had made plans for their date prior to DJ Hale's birthday where Jackson and Rocki renewed their friendship. Jackson had yet to talk to Jessica about this but hoped she would understand as he and Jessica were simply friends. Sure they had grown close over these few weeks and he sensed that she liked him, and he her but so far that was it.

Jackson dressed nicely in new blue Armani single breasted jacket and matching pants. He wore a Kenneth Cole white button up dress shirt but opted to not wear a tie and had the top two buttons unbuttoned. He pulled up to the front door of the Matthews residence and was greeted by Jessica who was wearing a silver cowl neck dress. The dress was thigh length and Jessica looked amazing. Her hair was loose and flowing freely down her neck. She had on a silver necklace that he knew contained a photo of herself holding Brandon when he was an infant. The top part of the inside had a more recent photo of just Brandon. Jessica had shown it to him shortly after the pair started spending time with one another.

"So... not that I'm complaining mind you, but why are you picking me up at 3pm? I thought we were just going out for dinner." Jessica inquired upon climbing into the car.

Jackson smiled and before answering lowered the roof of his car. Jessica waited for the motors to go silent before she turned her attention back to Jackson. "Because our reservations are for 4:15 pm and it's going to take us a while to get there." Jackson informs her.

Before she can ask a followup question Jackson shifts out of park and into first gear and drives off. Fifteen minutes into their drive Jessica came to the conclusion they were not staying in the immediate area of their homes when she saw the sign indicating they were leaving San Francisco. As soon as Jackson got on the highway she felt him shift gears and really begin to open up on the speed. Her long brown hair was blowing backwards and she had to admit it was a thrill to feel the air whipping around them as they darted through the cars. Jackson was driving fast but not pushing the car to its limit as there were bound to be highway patrolmen out just waiting for a speed demon to give a ticket to. Although she really wondered if they would actually be able to catch this car if Jackson floored it.

It was quarter to four when Jackson exited the highway and Jessica Matthews found that they were to have dinner in San Jose. She did very little traveling save for select political events with her father. Ever since the scandal she and Brandon had to be kept away from the public eye, least the media decide to revisit it. Jessica had actually finished her education at home and took online college courses working on a law degree, specializing in criminal justice. Jackson looked at the digital read out on the car and saw they had twenty-five minutes until their reservation time. Jackson handed Jessica his cellphone and told her to set an alarm for fifteen minutes. Jackson altered their course and took Jessica to the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden. Shutting down the car, Jackson came around and opened the door for Jessica. Taking he hand the two began taking in the sites of the garden.

Jackson had looked up various things to do and had deciding against dancing in favor of truly showing Jessica a good time. The sights of the area looked beautiful online but it was truly amazing in person. Jessica held Jackson's arm while the two strolled leisurely through the rose garden. Of course the alarm brought their trip to an all to short conclusion but Jackson insisted he had other plans that he hoped Jessica would also enjoy. The pair drove off to have dinner at Parcel 104. The restaurant was very nice and the weather was superb so Jackson requested an outside table. When they were shown their table Jackson pulled Jessica's seat out for her. Once seated she adjusted her seat while Jackson sat across from her. Jessica and Jackson made small talk while their food was prepared and after they finished. It was coming up on 5:45 in the evening when the two collected Jackson's car from the valet. Jessica had just fastened her seat belt while Jackson was tipping the valet for taking good car of his car. Once Jackson was seated and his safety belt was fasten he turned to his date for the evening.

"So Mr Fuller, shall we head home?" Jessica asked halfheartedly. This was her first real date in six years and she was having such a good time that she actually didn't want it to end.

"Well, since you have a sitter for the entire night, I thought you might want to join me for one more stop before we head for home." Jackson informs his companion.

"I'm at your mercy." Jessica says.

In her short twenty-two years of life Jessica had never had such an amazing time. After dinner Jackson had taken her to Sierra Road, a nice stretch of land and Jackson does a hard U-turn and ends up in the dirt on the opposite side of the road. Jackson was in a hurry to get there before 6pm.

"Ok Jackson, what was the hurry?" Jessica asks. Jackson unfastens his seat belt and exits the car. "Join me." Jackson requests as he pops the trunk of his car and pulls out a blanket that he sets up on the back of his car. He takes off his jacket and places it on Jessica's shoulders. Jackson parks himself on the trunk of his car and helps Jessica up and she sits besides him. The two watch as the sun begins to set over the horizon. Jessica marvels as darkness overtakes the light and all of the lights on the various poles and buildings shine. It is a truly beautiful panoramic view of the landscape and it was a beautiful sight to be seen.

"Thank you for bringing me here Jackson. It has been the best night of my life." Jessica says and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

"It was my pleasure." Jackson says. He allows her to keep his Jacket as the temperature is dropping now that the sun has set. Jessica also asked that he leave the roof down for their drive home for now.

Unfortunately for the couple, mother nature decided to throw a monkey wrench into their amazing night. When they reached Palo Alto the skies filled with ugly looking clouds and thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. Jackson closed his roof and windows as the first few drops fell on his car. Five minutes later the rain started pouring so much the windshield wipers were having a hard time keeping up with the amount of rain hitting the windshield. Jackson slowed down as the rain continued falling hard on all the cars and trucks on the road.

"Accuweather says its supposed to rain like this for quite some time." Jessica informs Jackson.

"I can barely see three feet in front of me." Jackson says.

"We should just stop somewhere for awhile. If the rain stops we can head back out. If it doesn't... we'll we will just have to see." Jessica says.

The sky only opened up even more and the rain continued its downpour. Jackson let Jessica out at the front door of the nearest hotel. Visibility was so low that Jackson almost crashed twice so rather than risk their lives they decided to stop for the night.

"I'm sorry sir. Due to the storm the only room I have left is a suite with a queen sized bed." The woman behind the check out counter informed Jackson.

"We'll take it." Jessica says walking up besides Jackson. She had just gotten off the phone with her sitter to let her know that the storm had stranded them in Palo Alto for the night. The young woman had figured that was the case when Jessica had not returned earlier as expected. She told Jessica to be safe and that she had everything in hand with Brandon who was crashed out already.

The desk clerk took Jessica's credit card as Jackson was still relegated to using cash and the hotel required a credit card as policy. Jackson and Jessica were quick to get to their room as they were both quite damp from their exposure to the rain (Jackson more so than Jessica). Jackson let Jessica have the bathroom first. He turned the heat up in the room, collected two hangers from the closet area and placed his suit on it and hung it over the heating vents. Jessica called out to Jackson and held her dress out from behind the door so he could do the same for her. Jackson placed it over the vent and then collected a robe from the closet and put it on while he awaited Jessica.

Jessica was in the bathroom washing the day's sweat from her body as she thought about what this night could mean for the two of them. As her hand holding the bar of soap passes over her left breast she can feel her heart was pounding rapidly at the thought that Jackson Fuller was sitting (more than likely) in a terry cloth robe and little else in the next room. Jessica thoroughly washed her body and then turned off the water. Jessica climbs out of the shower, grabs the towel and dries off her body. Jessica then puts her terry cloth robe on and after taking off her shower cap shakes out her hair and then exits the bathroom.

"The shower is all yours." Jessica informs Jackson.

"Thank you." Jackson says standing up and swapping places with the younger woman.

Jackson walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind him. Hanging his white terry cloth robe on the door hook he turns the water back on. As expected it is instantly warm. Jackson moves the shower curtain to the side and step in, carefully stepping on the nonskid pads. Jackson does a quick rinse before he lathers up his hair with shampoo and then rinses it out. He grabs the soap that Jessica left for him and quickly washed his body. He then does a through rinse off and after shutting off the water climbs out of the shower and dries his body off.

Jackson returns to the room and finds the lighting has been dimmed. Jessica is sitting on top of the queen sized bed in her robe awaiting his return. Jackson went over to their clothes and could feel that the heat was drying them off but that they were still damp.

"They should be dry by morning." Jackson informs his date.

"So... to address the elephant in the room. How do you want to do this?" Jessica asks.

"Just hand me one of the pillows and I'll sleep at the foot of the bed." Jackson offers. He doesn't want to make Jessica uncomfortable with any other suggestions.

"It's a queen sized bed Jackson. We can share it. You 'll sleep on top of the covers, and I will be under them." Jessica insists.

"Are you sure. I don't want you to be uncomfortable."

If you only knew. Jessica thought to herself. "I'm quite sure." She says patting the spot on the bed besides her.

Of course one of the drawbacks of turning up the heat to dry their clothes and warming up the room meant that the room started to get uncomfortably warm as time when by. Jessica was the first to wake up in the middle of the night due to the heat. She got out of bed and adjusted the heat. It was still raining outside so she opened the window for a few moments to let out some of the heat. Closing the window, Jessica returned to her side of the bed, removed her robe leaving her naked and climbed back under the sheets. Jessica looks over and sees that Jackson is flush from the heat. His face looking very red. She undoes the sash of his robe and pulls it aside. The one thing she didn't count on was that Jackson was primarily a light sleeper (now) and she found herself pushed on to her back with a hand at her throat and his right fist ready to fly. When he realized who it was that he had in his grasp He lets her go immediately.

"I'm sorry." Jackson says climbing off of Jessica.

"No, I'm sorry. You looked so hot and uncomfortable that I didn't even think that I might disturb you." Jessica said.

Jessica's eyes dropped down to Jackson exposed body. His robe was wide open and his member was standing fully erect and at attention as he sat atop the younger woman's body. Jessica decided to make a move and go for broke. She placed her hands on Jackson's shoulders and drew him down to her. Her lips sought his out and gave him a long, soft, and loving kiss. As the two kiss Jackson's conscience was at war. Jackson knew that he liked Jessica, he really did but part of him couldn't help but think back to his recent romantic liaison with Rocki.

"Jessica..." Jackson says trying to be strong and interrupt her kiss.

However Jessica does not relent as she is relishing the warmth of Jackson's flesh against her own. Jessica's lips plant soft kiss along the front of Jackson's neck, under his chin, and then she reconnects their mouths while she gently forces her tongue into Jackson's mouth. As they grind against one another the sheet and blanket are still separating the pair bellow their waist. Jessica uses her knees and then when the sheet is far enough down her feet to push said coverings out of the way so the couple can finally make that special connection. Jessica moves her left hand down, gently grasps Jackson's member and inserts the head into her wet slit. Jackson knows this is his last chance. He can stop this before it goes any farther but the moment he enters her Jackson and Jessica loose all self control.

Jessica's super warm furnace feels so inviting Jackson is unable to keep himself from thrusting forward earning him a groan of approval from Jessica. Jessica wraps her arms around Jackson and begs him to hold still for just a moment. As it turns out she had only had sex the one time and has not been with anyone ever since. Jackson allows her to become accustomed to him and when she starts to kiss his neck he takes that as his signal to begin moving.

Jackson slowly moves his hips, his member starts moving forward and then out. Jessica closes her eyes and savors every subtle movement. Jackson obviously knows what he is doing as she can't help but feel good as he moves within her. Jessica moans in Jackson's ear a praises how good he is making her feel. Her one sexual encounter with the Heartbreaker was all she had to compare to but she already felt 100 times better than that experience. Of course she realized now that all he was trying to do was impregnate her, which mean he really only cared about getting himself off and not making her first time special. Jessica's hands clutched Jackson's hips and started pulling on him enticing him to thrust harder.

"Ohhh god Jackson." Jessica moans. Her finger nails drag up just enough that Jackson feels it without her raking his back to hard.

Jessica moves her legs apart allowing Jackson to thrust harder and deeper into her. She locks her ankles behind Jackson's waist as he continues to drill into her. Jessica pulls Jackson's chest to her to close the gap between them. Jessica kisses Jackson and he can feel the love she has for him. Jackson just wished he felt as much love for her as she did for him. He did care about her, he had no doubt about that. He honestly just couldn't say he was in love with her or anyone for that matter.

Jackson could feel Jessica's walls tightening around his rod, and he could feel his orbs tightening as well. Jessica's finger nails were pressed firmly into Jackson's shoulder blades. The fingers on her left hand were touching the scar of his bullet wounds. Jessica moaned, and groaned, and finally climaxed when she felt Jackson Fuller explode inside of her. Her legs held his hips in place as his member erupted inside of her.

Guilt was creeping into Jackson's subconscious and kept waking him up every hour to hour and a half. Jessica was snuggled into his left side, Jackson's arm wrapped around her hip. A content smile upon her face. Jackson wished that he were as happy as she was. He wished that life were simpler and that the two of them could just run off with Brandon somewhere and live quietly. But that would require all of Jackson's issues with the CIA to be resolved, and all the matter of who truly owned Jackson's heart was equally settled. He knew he still had feelings for Rocki, that was made abundantly clear three days ago (and she still cared for him). But now it was clear that Jessica cared a great deal for him, and Jackson cared for her. Jackson quickly realized that he needed to take control of his life, both professionally and personally.

To Be Continued


	8. Retaliation

AN: Casting – Anthony Miles (aka The Director) played by Joshua Segarra

~March 15th, 2037~

It was now a month past Valentines Day and the world seemed to have turned against all those that Jackson Fuller held near and dear. It started small, with various calls saying that bills had not been paid. Then all of the Uncle Monty's franchises were shutdown by the health department due to "mass complaints". Harmon & Hale came under fire last and was shutdown by the state due to an issue with their business license. Jackson suspected the knew where this rash of bad luck came from but after his family's restaurant chain came under fire he knew for sure who was behind this blatant attack. Jackson pulled out his cellphone and dialed a phone number. It rang three times before the individual picked it up. "It's time." Jackson says into the phone.

Director Anthony Miles walks into his office with a wicked grin on his face as he swipes his access card to gain access to his department. He is the first to arrive, as usually, and swipes his access card to gain entrance into his office. Sitting down at his desk he enters his password to the computer and then clicks on the icon to access his secured files. However when he does this the computer registers an error. He tries again but the same message come up. He tries to manually enter the access as opposed to the link and it too gives him an error message. He starts to swear as it will be at least an hour before the first IT tech arrives on site. He has one hour to work on non-secure items before he can go about doing all of the important things he should be doing now while everyone bellow his security clearance arrives.

"What do you mean they've taken away our access to the secured server?" Director Miles demands to know.

"It seems that the senate oversight committee had our access revoked effective 0600 this morning." One of Miles lower technicians informed him.

"All of our computers are locked out of all secure systems. Servers, satellites, databases... everything classified as secret and above is unavailable to us."

"Get out of my sight!" Director Miles yells. Once his office is cleared of all peons Miles pounded on his keyboard trying every password and backdoor access he had, none of them worked. Tossing his keyboard to the side, Miles began to seethe in his office chair. His telephone begins to ring and after four rings he hits the speaker button. "What is it." He yells into the phone.

"Sir, Senator Matthews of the Senate Oversight Committee is here to meet with you." Miles personal assistant informs him.

"Send him in." Director Miles insists. He straightens his tie and recomposes himself as the door opens and in walks the senator. "Senator, I didn't know we had a meeting scheduled for today but I seem to be having some issues with my systems."

"I know. I was the one who pulled the plug on your department." The senator informs the Domestic Operational Clandestine Agency chief.

"You did this to us? Why? On what grounds would you shut us down." The director asks.

"Because Miles... you broke the law. You are running illegal clandestine operations on US soil and have unlawfully taken American lives. The FBI is, as we speak, arresting your entire team and confiscating your equipment." Senator Matthews informs the man. "I just wanted to come by and watch as they hauled you out in cuffs before the media."

"You have no proof." Director Miles tells Senator Matthews.

"Oh but I do Miles." The senator smugly smiles at the DOCA director and opens his briefcase and tosses several file folders down in front of the director. The files are all stamped COPY in red signed by the Attorney General of the USA. The director recognizes them immediately as the files that were stolen by Jackson Fuller at the end of last year. Three federal agents joined the senator and cuffed Director Miles. As he collected the copies of the incriminating evidence he tells Miles, "No body and I mean, NO BODY attacks my family and gets away with it Miles. You went after me through my daughter, you're lucky we're doing this by the book and not going old testament on you like we did your boy, the Heartbreaker." Senator Matthews informs the now disgraced director. The senator shows miles several pictures of his operative mangled and bloody body. The director is read his rights and then taken away to be processed.

~ 03/15/2037 1715 hrs ~

Elsewhere in the state Jackson Fuller sat outside of a cabin located in Horse County near Yosemite National Park. The area was beautiful and very quiet. Jackson had summoned his grandfather, parents, brothers, the Gibblers, Guerreros, Harmons, Katsopolis, Gladstones, and Matthews to this location with the strict instructions to shut off and leave all cellphones, not to bring any smart device and not to use any debit or credit cards. Jackson made sure it was secure and safe for his group. His plan was to only stay for two nights until he was done taking care of his family and loved ones and a little business transaction. Ramona and Rocki were the first to arrive as Ramona had driven. His immediate family were next to arrive followed by his Aunt Stephanie's family. The Guerreros arrived soon after followed by the Harmons. The remainder of Jackson's extended family as well as Jessica and Brandon all arrived at the same time. Jackson had everyone gathered around on the covered patio.

"So, I know you are all wondering why we are meeting here and why you were asked to leave everything other than the cash you had on you behind. The answer is simple, because this family is under attack. The director of Domestic Operational Clandestine Agency has decided to take the gloves off and if he couldn't get his files back by attacking me he was going to go after all of you. The overdue bills, our family's restaurants shutdown, closing the pet clinic... that was all his doing." Jackson explained.

"Sooo what are we going to do?" DJ Hale asked her son.

"I"ve already started to retaliate against him. Jessica's father is at this moment moving against the DOCA. If everything goes as planned the director and his whole group will be in jail by now." Jackson states.

"So why are we out in the middle of nowhere without all of our things?" Max asks his older brother.

"Because even in prison the directors can strike at me... at us. Once he's processed he'll get one phone call and I have no idea who he'll call but you can bet it will involve retribution against all of us. Which is why you all have to run." Jackson tells his loved ones.

"What do you mean we have to run?" Max Fuller complains to everyone present. Max began to move towards his brother but his mother put her hand up and Max stopped in place.

"Now that the director knows that I've given his confidential files to someone that is capable of causing irreparable harm to his career and agendas he will initiate whatever contingencies he has in place for a situation like this. This man is dangerous and he's going to do everything in his power to eliminate all threats and if he can't get to the threats he will take out those closet to them... in this case, all of you. It's the scorched earth theory, if you can't eliminate the target you eliminate everything." Jackson explained.

"So we're just supposed to give up our live, just because you say so?" Max questions his older brother.

"If you want to keep breathing... yes." Jackson informs his younger brother.

"How do you know they're coming after us. Nothing has happened since you walked through the door on grandpa's birthday." Max complains some more.

"Nothing that you've seen Max." Jackson states.

"We only have your word of that." Retorts Jackson's younger brother.

"Yeah mine... Ramona and Rocki's." Jackson says.

Everyone else in attendance turned to the pair who suddenly looked like a pair of dear in the headlights.

"So... what happened?" Max inquired.

"Well..." Ramona begins.

~ February 10th ~

The pair of Rocki and Ramona were out picking up a gift for DJ's birthday. It was getting harder and harder to come up with gifts for the older woman so Ramona and Rocki had talked to Max and Tommy and the four made plans for DJ and Steve to go on a cruise during the spring. They had discussed it with Steve as he would need to have his schedule clear. Max and Rocki were more than capable of dividing up DJ's appointments at the pet clinic so her schedule was covered. Having also collected a portion of the cost from Jackson, the girls were on their way to pay for the trip and collect the tickets. As they placed the tickets in the birthday card, pre-signed by the three Fullers, Ramona and Rocki, the girls heard several cracks in the distance.

Looking in the direction the sound appeared to be traveling from the girls saw four figures running on a nearby roof top, one man being chased by three others. Ramona pulls out her cellphone, turns on the camera and zooms in to reveal that the first man is actually Jackson. She hits record and watches the scene play out before her and Rocki. The runner (Jackson) leaped off the roof and tossed something to the ground that upon impact inflated into a landing pad. The figure turned about in mid-air and fired four times striking the first two men. When he hit the airpad he rolled backwards onto his feet. Seeing the area was clear he tucks his weapon in the waistband of his pants. The forth man from the roof jumps and lands on the pad, leaps forward and tackles Jackson to the ground. Jackson kicks the man away and his opponent rolls through and when he is upright unsheathes a large combat knife. Jackson steps back and dodges the knife attacks and the assassin continues his attack slashing towards Jackson and when he misses swiping the blade back at Jackson's midsection. The killer, now holding the knife in his right hand swipes to his left and then brings the blade quickly back to the right. The girls watch as Jackson block his attacker's arm with his right hand, slams the palm of his left hand into the man's inner elbow and using his right hand forces the knife blade into his opponents chest. The girls watch as the assassin falls to the ground and Jackson takes a few quick breaths before he raises his head. They can see him looking about before he starts to dash off. The two see him collect a motorcycle that was stashed off to the side and he starts the bike up. Only after Jackson is rocketing away do they hear the roar of another group of motorcycles in the distance. The see another trio chasing after Jackson on race style motorcycles traveling about as fast as Jackson was.

"Come on Ramona." Rocki yells climbing into the passenger seat of Ramona Gibbler's car.

Ramona hopes in, shifts into gear and peels out. "Come on, I know that the great Ramona Gibbler has to have supped up her street legal car in some fashion... Punch it." Rocki orders.

Ramona had indeed customized her Honda Civic. While she did not condone street racing she was not opposed to racing on a track and she and several of her friends had their cars modified and would take them on the the local pro tracks to see who was the best. Ramona shifted gears and pushed her car until she was as close to Jackson's pursuers as she could get due to max speed and the time it took to catch up to them. However she did have one last trick up her sleeve. Ramona had a nitro booster installed for just such an occasion and engaged the booster to launch her car forward at a greater speed. The trio of motorcycles did not realize what was happening until Ramona was almost on top of them. The trio had been in a flying V pattern and the lead cycle that was taking aim at Jackson only caught the fast moving car in his rear view mirror just before its front bumper would have hit his wingmen's rear tires. Unfortunately for the wingmen they did not see Ramona and were knocked off their bikes at high speed. Rocki actually closed her eyes as she didn't want to see what came next for the riders. The leader took his eyes off Jackson, turned about and was about to put some rounds through Ramona's windshield when he was suddenly dealt a fatal blow by Jackson Fuller.

Jackson had seen Ramona and Rocki in his rear view mirror deal with the pair of wingmen. The moment the lead rider took his eyes off Jackson however was his big mistake as Jackson cut his throttle until the moment his assailant was on him. Jackson took that moment to pull up on he left side and shove his assailant causing the rider to lose control of the bike. The rider struck the ground and he rolled like a barrel for several feet while the bike caught fire and exploded on the right side of the road.

When the chase was over Rocki picks up Ramona's phone and dials Jackson's number. As Jackson didn't have his bluetooth helmet he couldn't pick up his phone. The phone was however mounted to a wrist strap so he could see that she was trying to contact him. Jackson begins decelerating and pulling over to the right. Ramona pulls her car over to the side and stops at the side of the barren road where Jackson is waiting for the girls. Ramona parks her car, shuts down the engine and the pair exit the vehicle. Jackson gives Ramona a hug followed by Rocki.

"I thought that your old boss wasn't after you while you had all those files." Rocki asked Jackson.

"First he was always going to try and reacquire his files again. Second, the majority of the contingencies I have in place are all in case of my death. If I'm not dead, they stay hidden." Jackson explained.

"So how long has this been going on?" Ramona asks her brother.

"Since new years." Jackson tells the girls.

"You've been dealing with these guys since the new year started?" Ramona screeched.

"These guys in particular... not sure how long. I've had to deal with multiple assailants for quite some time." Jackson then went on the explain many of the situations he had fought his way through.

"So... did you get the tickets." Jackson asked the girls changing the subject as he dusts himself off and adjusts his clothes.

"You should have told us what was going on Jackson. We had a right to know." Max yells at his brother.

"I was protecting my family and friends, just like I'm doing right now." Jackson says glaring at his brother. "I can appreciate that you're not happy that life has taken a turn for the worst. Believe me, no one knows that better than I do. But I will not apologize for keeping you in the dark so you can go about your lives in blissful ignorance. Now you can take the bags I've given you and use it or you can go home and take your chances there. But... if you don't accept my help now, don't expect me to come swooping in to save you at a later date when things go wrong." Jackson tells Max. "And they will go wrong."

"Max... if your brother says we need to run than we need to run." DJ Hale informs her son. She isn't happy about the situation her family is in but realized that if Jackson was telling them they needed to do this, then it was for their own good.

"But my life is here mom. Rose is here and I'm not going to leave without her." Max declares.

"Actually, she's waiting for you at the dock." Jackson tells Max.

"What..."

"I knew you would feel this way. I explained everything to her and her mother and made arrangements for them to be waiting for you." Jackson informs Max.

Jackson has several large bags on a long table, each bag which with the name of a group on it. Jackson hands them out to a member of each of those groups. "The label side of the bag contains passports for everyone in your those passports will get you through any customs in the world with no problems. The burner cellphones are to be used sparingly they have your real names in them, not the fake ones. DO NOT use them to call anyone outside of this group. DO NOT use them to check answering machines or voice mails. Most important, do not talk about this situation with anyone. Listening posts all around the world look for keywords, if you want to complain to one another, do it in person. Not through the phone lines."

The groups collect the black luggage bags Jackson has for them. They find the bags are filled with passports for each member of their group, a laptop, burner cellphones, prepaid credit cards and cash.

"One more thing." Jackson starts to say. "Do not, I repeat, DO NOT sign into any of your old e-mail or social media anywhere. It will set off digital red flags and the CIA will send a team to either collect you or kill you. I am not joking." Jackson explains. Jackson hugged everyone as he apologized for uprooting them. His family and friends were very forgiving, all save Max. Jackson didn't truly blame him last individuals to receive their new lives were Jessica and Brandon, followed by Rocki. Jessica hugged Jackson tightly and rested her head in his chest.

"You're not coming back are you?" She whispered to Jackson. "You're going to ground and you're never coming back up."

"I don't know. It's very likely I'll have to disappear forever." Jackson tells Jessica.

"In that case..." Jessica places her hands on Jackson's face and draws him in for a kiss. Rocki turns away at this display of affection. When the kiss finally ends Jessica says, "I will always love you."

Jackson smiles, kneels down to Brandon and gives the little guy a hug. "You take good care of your mom for me ok." Jackson tells the six year old. Brandon smiles and nods. Brandon holds out his fist and Jackson fist bumps with the little guy. "I think I'll take the cruise route with your mom and get off on one of the tropical stops." Jessica informs Jackson.

"Be safe." Jackson tells the younger woman as he hugs her goodbye. He says nothing further as the pair climb into the van that his immediate family arrived in. He watches as everyone waves to him as they all leave.

"So... anything you'd like to share?" The lone remaining person present asks Jackson. Rocki is standing behind him, arms crossed with a sour look on her face as she awaits Jackson's response.

"If you want me to tell you something you need to ask. I'm not in the mood for games right now Rocki." Jackson says as he opens the back door of his current residence and walks into the rustic looking cabin. The furnishings are amazing, he wished that he truly had the time to enjoy his surroundings.

"Ok, what is going on between the two of you?" Rocki asks following Jackson into the cabin. "I know we aren't dating but I think I have a right to know if I'm even in the running here."

Jackson sits down at the table and waits for Rocki to take a seat with him. When she does Jackson begins. "I know I've been distant ever since we were together last time. Part of that was because I didn't know where I wanted to go with us. That became even more complex after Valentines day." Jackson states.

"What happened on Valentines day? I thought you were out of town." Rocki says.

"I did go out of town... with Jessica." Jackson informs Rocki. "It was supposed to be just two friends spending a nice time together. Dinner, a few sights, then home. Everything went according to plan until the heavens opened up and the rain made it impossible to drive back. We stopped at a hotel after it was clear that the rain wasn't stopping for the night and..."

"I get it." Rocki says not wanting any further details. He mind was already filling in the blanks for her.

"Let me be clear about one thing... I never intended for it to happen and I did try and stop the encounter from happening... at first." Jackson said in his defense.

"I supposed you were just an unwilling victim." Rocki says not really looking at Jackson.

"Are you really going to throw stones here miss glass house." Jackson rhetorically asks Rocki.

Rocki says nothing to that. What can she say to that as she was just as guilty. Jackson at least had the decency to tell her to her face in a more timely manner.

"I told Jessica the following day about what happened between you and I said that while I cared about both of you I would not and could not commit to either of you at that time until I dealt with my current situation. She wasn't happy, but she accepted my decision." Jackson tells Rocki.

"She loves you... you know that right. And I mean that as in the head over heels kind of love." Rocki states for the record.

"I am aware of that. She told me as much the morning after Valentines day." Jackson tells Rocki.

"So she put her heart on the line and you..."

Jackson answers, "Put up the stop sign. Despite how much I care for her I just wasn't in love with her... I'm still not. She deserves someone who loves her wholeheartedly and that isn't me."

"Just to be clear, she did just tell you she would always love you correct?" Rocki asked confused.

"She did, but you will notice I neither did nor said anything after we kissed. That was me saying goodbye... forever." Explained Jackson.

"So now you're going to say goodbye to me, is that it?" Rocki asks.

"Only if you never want to see me again." Jackson says holding out his hand to Rocki from across the table. "I leave that decision up to you."

Rocki stands up and turns her back to Jackson while she considers what it was that he was saying. "So what are you saying Jackson. No games... tell me what you want." Rocki says using Jackson's own tactics against him.

Rocki never hears Jackson move from his spot at the table. She thinks he is just sitting there trying to decide either what he is feeling or trying to decide what she wants to hear. It isn't until his arms wrap around her waist, and he pulls her against his body. "I want what I wanted twelve years... no what I've wanted since I was fourteen. I want you... because I love you. I always have, and I always will." Jackson tells Rocki.

"Are you saying this because you're never going to see me again, or because you think it's what I want to hear..." Questions Rocki.

"I'm saying it because it's what I've always felt. Despite everything that happened in the past, I know my heart will always belong to you. I love you and I would rather spend my life living off the grid like this with you than spending another day living a life of luxury without you." Jackson declares.

"How can you say that. How can you be so sure." Asks Rocki.

"Because I tried living without you in my life. I only managed to find happiness for a brief moment in time before my job ruined things with that person. I know you still have feelings for me, otherwise you would already be gone. But for your own sake, you have to decide Rocki, right here, right now. Are you willing to take a gamble with me, or do you want to play it safe and run?" Jackson asks the woman he loves.

Rocki stood unmoving as she pondered her response to Jackson's declaration and question. The logical part of her brain was telling her not only was it insane to say yes because of the danger, but because Jackson had sex with Jessica only days after they did. However her brain was at war with her heart because she knew she was just as guilty back in the day of betraying the love she knew Jackson had for her and he had not only forgiven her but was willing to bury it in the past, and move forward with her.

Turning in his arms and stepping back from him Rocki says, "Jackson..."

To Be Continued


	9. Close Call

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Casting Louis Ozawa Changchien as Sunjaya & Saffron Burrows as The Assistant

~ FBI Holding Facility 1200 hrs~

Director Anthony Miles had spent the better part of his morning being charged, processed, and questioned at the FBI holding facility that he had been in several times, but this was the first time on this side of the mirrored window. He was currently awaiting his lawyer to arrive while the feds thought they could try and get some statement or confession from him before that occurred. Miles wasn't talking. The arresting officer in charge knew that he wouldn't, he was bound to have so many favors owed he would be foolish not to wait for his council and call in said favor. The director sat in the room with his eyes closed, basically zoned out as the now pair of FBI agents hit him with fact after fact of what they had on him and tried their best to coerce a confession from him. That stopped at the sound of the buzzer. Miles legal team was here. The Department of Justice cleared out the observation room so that Miles could have a private conversation with his legal team. The pair of FBI agents in interrogation left in a huff as well. When a minute went by Miles snapped out of his self-imposed trance. "It's about time you got here. I thought I was actually going to have to take a nap." Miles berated his tardy council.

"We had to wait until the bureau was finished processing you. They dragged their feet as long as they legally could before the DOJ (Department of Justice) got involved further." His council informed him. "I believe you know my... assistant."

"Yes." Miles says when his lawyer hands him a notepad and a pen. Miles scribbles some thing onto the pad and slides it across to the assistant. She looks at it memorizes it and then shreds it in pieces making sure to take several different parts so no one can reconstruct the message.

"If you will excuse me." The assistant says and then excuses herself from the room.

The woman in question swiftly left the room and then casually leaves the building. Getting into her government issued car, she starts the engine and after pulling out of her parking space she heads to the designated bus terminal. Inside the terminal she makes her way to the long term locker section. At the lockers she punches in the code and the door opens. She pulls out a black briefcase from the locker and after closing the locker door leaves the bus terminal. Once in the car she puts in the numbers to the combination lock and opens the case. Inside she finds a secure laptop, an external hard drive and a portable satellite phone. Booting up the computer she enters her password and is allowed access to the device. She plugs in the external drive and inputs the code that the director gave her. Once the code is accepted the assistant is granted access to the directors emergency protocols. Scanning the instructions pertaining to the two targets listed, the assistant pulls up the recommended asset to deal with said situations.

~ 03/15/2037 2135 hrs ~

"I'm scared Jackson." Rocki Mahan tells Jackson Fuller as she rests atop her lover. The two are currently laying down on the cabin bed, the sheets are rumpled and the blankets are tossed about. It was hard for her to admit, but she needed to be totally honest with Jackson. If they were actually going to do this they need complete transparency and they had agreed to be so.

"I wouldn't believe you if you said otherwise." Jackson tells her as he moves a stray lock of hair from her beautiful face. "This situation is terrifying. But as long as we play it smart, follow all the laws, and don't do anything to draw attention to ourselves we will be fine."

"It would me nice if we could just stay here forever though." Rocki comments as she kisses Jackson's chest. "It's very nice here. The area is secluded, and the neighboring area isn't filled with spytech. The people are friendly and seem to care about one another." Rocki tells her lover.

"Well, we'll have to see what we can do. You never know, the person who owns this place may be willing to part with it for the right price." Jackson says.

"To bad you had to give away all of the excess cash to our family so they could build their new lives." Rocki says against Jackson's chest.

"I gave away almost all of the funds that were in the storage unit. I made sure to keep enough for the two of us to live comfortably. Besides, I still have a trick or two up my sleeve." Jackson informs Rocki.

"You're not wearing sleeves." Rocki says kissing Jackson's bare chest again.

"Neither are you." Jackson says kissing her forehead.

"Out of curiosity, exactly how much money was in that storage unit?" Rocki wondered as she ran her finger along Jackson's naked chest.

"Ten million dollars in cash for various operations." Jackson explains.

This caught Rocki's attention. "You mean to tell me you had access to Ten million dollars? How can the CIA just let a single unit like that get lost?" Rocki asks.

"Honey, that is a just a small depot. There are warehouses all over the country with far more equipment and cash on hand for every occasion. Guns, money, clothes, cars, drugs, computers, you name it they deal in it. Obviously the bigger ones have security personnel and you can't just write them off. But smaller ones, like the ones I managed, they disappear all the time. Either because someone deletes them from the system or because they're destroyed rather than risk being discovered." Explained Jackson.

"So what did you do with all the rest of the specialized equipment in the unit?" Inquires Rocki.

"I kept a few items and sold the rest. Hence my saying we can live comfortably." Explained Jackson.

"So... goodbye Jackson and Rocki, hello..."

"Marc and Olivia soon to be Brewer." Jackson informs Rocki.

"Is that how you see me... an Olivia." Rocki playfully asks Jackson.

"I see you as more of a Liv." Jackson says planting a kiss on his lady's lips. "I can conjure us up new identities that are more to your liking if we move again. For now its Marc and Liv."

Rocki sits up just enough to plant herself at the head of Jackson's member. She slowly lowers herself onto his shaft and allows him to fill her completely.

This is the third time since she looked Jackson in the eyes and said she would rather take a leap of faith with him than spend another day of her life trying to find someone else that she could love and share her life with that makes her heart beat like he does. That was all Jackson needed to hear as he claimed Rocki for his own. Rocki would then initiate their first time together as an official couple (again). The sex was as passionate and lust driven as their reunion after DJ's birthday. As a matter of fact, if it weren't for the change in venue the events occurred exactly like the last time they had sex.

After a short breather of cuddling Rocki moved on to her right side and Jackson moved so the were both parallel and lifting her left leg and supporting it with his left hand he slowly reentered his lover. Rocki groaned her approval as Jackson slowly began moving his hips so his member filled her from in a way they had never tried before. The two had not been as adventurous during the earlier parts of their sexual relationship, Jackson was all about making sure that Rocki's needs were met more than exploration, which had been fine with her. She knew Jackson had one encounter with Jessica and while she didn't want any details about that encounter a small part in the back of her mind did wonder what they had done. She was sure as Jackson was all about his partner's needs that he had made sure she came before he finished. Clearing her mind of the two of them, Rocki vocally told Jackson how amazing he was making her feel. She felt his mouth and the nape of her neck and moaned in pleasure as he sucked lovingly on it. After the two climaxed for the second time Jackson separated from Rocki and that was when she climbed aboard him and rested on him while they re-energized.

Now that they were both rested Rocki angled herself just right so as she pushed downwards Jackson's pelvic bone was rubbing her special spot. Rocki did this for several minutes before she lifted her right arm and ran it through her long black hair, thrusting out her handful sized breasts. Jackson brought his hands up and claimed them while Rocki continued riding Jackson's member until neither could last any longer and for the third time that day Jackson filled Rocki's body. Rocki came crashing down on Jackson but found the strength to move up just enough to kiss him for all she was worth.

Jackson wrapped his arms around her and held her closely to him. Rocki didn't move except to try and catch her breath. The two looked in one anothers eyes and both said "I Love You." at the same time. Time crept by as they just stayed wrapped in one another's arms.

"So... Mr Brewer..." Rocki says trying out his new name. "What's our next move?"

"Well Liv," Jackson replied, "I have to run back to San Francisco tomorrow for something very important. I'll be going alone but as soon as that errand is done we will see where we go and what we do next."

"Are you sure you absolutely have to go back to the city?" Rocki asked with concern in her voice.

"I wouldn't go if I didn't think it was important." Jackson replied.

"Ok, just be extremely careful." Rocki says kissing Jackson. Jackson kisses her back and the two close their eyes and let sleep claim them.

~ 03/16/2037 1400 hrs ~

The Assistant was currently at an unspecified airfield operated covertly by the CIA. She sat patiently while her chauffeur stood outside waiting for the passenger on the C130 that was taxiing on their runway. The striking woman was sitting patiently in a black Cadillac CT6 with two file folders in her lap. She could hear the engines of the C130 shutting down and looking out of the tinted windows saw her asset disembark from said plane. The individual was of Asian descent, Indonesia specifically, dressed in a dark blue Armani suit with a white dress shirt and black tie and aviator style sunglasses. His hair was short but not military regulation short. He had no facial hair but his expression was very stern. He made his way to the car where the chauffeur opened the door allowing him access to the vehicle and to meet with his contact.

"These are your targets." The assistant says the moment he is seated inside the vehicle.

Sunjaya opens the first file and see's an older Caucasian male. He scans the basic information before closing the file and moving to the second one. A younger man, also Caucasian was the second target. "Former agent?" The man asks holding up the second folder.

"Yes, he was one of ours. He's a field agent but specializes in logistics and technology." The Assistant informs Sunjaya.

"How many men has he killed?" Sunjaya asked trying to gauge his opponent.

"Since his Burn Notice he has twenty confirmed kills." The assistant informs her operative.

"Collateral damage?"

"You are to use whatever means you deem necessary to eliminate the target. Desecration is not an issue." She tells her asset.

"Equipment?"

The Assistant pulls out an envelope. "Everything you could need is at this location. Just get the job done immediately."

The Assistant lets Sunjaya out of the car and he leaves to go get his specialized equipment.

~ 03/16/2037 1645 hrs ~

"Please let us know if you require anything else Mr Fuller." The young bank teller says as she turns to leave Jackson in the room for customers with safety deposit boxes.

Jackson risked coming back to San Francisco for only one reason, but it was a very important one to him. Unlocking the box, Jackson tilts the arm sized box and the sole item within said box slides down into his view. It is a small black velvet jewelry box. Jackson flipped open the lid to the jewelry box and the hinges squeaked as the ring that his grandfather had given to his dearly departed grandmother sat safely in said box. Shutting the lid Jackson pocketed the ring and carried the box back to the teller.

"I will not be needing this any longer." Jackson informs the teller and quickly goes through the process of terminating his account with the bank. He knew that once the information was entered into the system that it would send up red flags with any number of government agencies that were looking for him. Fortunately he had a contingency in place to get him out of the area. As soon as he exited the building dozens of government vehicles came out of nowhere. He saw several FBI, a few ATF, as well as local and state police surrounding him. Weapons were drawn and Jackson found himself surrounded.

"Can I help you officers?" Jackson asks holding his empty hands up in the air.

"Jackson Fuller, you are..." The lead FBI agent starts to say only to be cut off by someone over his comm unit. Holding his hand to his ear to stifle background noise, the agent in question gets his orders.

"Stand down everyone." The agent informs the officers and other agents.

"It seems our orders are a bit out of date. You have the bureau's apologies." The agent, one of the men that had been following Jackson Fuller since December stated.

"No hard feelings special agent... whatever your name is." Jackson grinned. He had phoned Jessica's father prior to leaving the safety of the cabin and made sure that Jackson's person of interest status was removed from all federal databases. The CIA might have him flagged in their system, but as they were not allowed to "legally" operate on US soil, there was nothing they could do about this at present.

However as Jackson began leaving he felt very uneasy. While his level of paranoia was not what it once was he knew when he was being watched. As he saw the last law enforcement vehicle pulling away and took his location into account he knew he was most likely somebody's crosshairs. Jackson casually pulled out his cellphone and caught the reflection of a flash of light from one of the tall buildings. Jackson hears the roar of a large caliber weapon and quickly moves to the right. He manages to count to two from the time the sound registered until the round punches a hole in the concrete sidewalk where he had been only moments ago. Jackson knows now that the shooter is at least a mile and a half away, maybe two. He hears the thunderous roar of the fifty caliber round again and Jackson moves again just before the round would strike him down.

No suppression, regular rounds as opposed to sub-sonic. They wan't me dead and they don't care about collateral damage. Jackson thinks to himself. Left with very few options Jackson does the last thing the sniper anticipated, he jumped into oncoming traffic as opposed to the safety of the nearest alleyway. Jackson figured he was forcing him there to make his kill shot and as Jackson quickly rolls to the left he see's the concrete from where he would have been if he had jumped right explode. As Jackson is in the middle of the road now the Sniper has to re-adjust his aim but then loses Jackson when a large box truck enters the area and Jackson manages to not only use it as cover but as his escape as he squats, lets the truck pass him and then jumps on the back of it. The truck is actually heading in the direction of the sniper so the assassin is unable to see Jackson's position and his target drops and manages to reach an alley that allows him to escape.

Sunjaya knows he has to evacuate the area as the six shots he fired were bound to be seen by more than just his target. Someone would be up here to investigate and it would be better to be gone before large groups of armed men arrive. Breaking down his weapon and putting it in its case, Sunjaya follows his exit strategy and is gone before anyone is able to reach his sniper post. The assassin had hoped to eliminate Fuller first as dealing with the Senator would be simple enough based on his reported travel patterns. After investigating Fuller's home and those of his family it was obvious to the assassin that he and his loved ones have gone to ground. This would make trying to reacquire him very difficult. When Sunjaya returned to the room he was staying in he began combing through Fuller's known associates. Each one was no longer in the area, there was no activity on their cellphones nor any credit transactions. Sunjaya knew this was all standard operating procedure for a field agent but had never seen it pulled off in since a short amount of time for so large a group. This was going to be an incredibly tough adversary to track down and eliminate. Fortunately for Sunjaya, he loved a challenge.

To Be Concluded


	10. The Standoff

~ May 27, 2037 1000 Hrs ~

Former Director Anthony Miles sat before the court in his nicest suit while his lawyer, a high priced Harvard graduate in a thousand dollar Armani suit, was making his opening statement. The prosecution had already made their opening statement and painted a picture of the Director as some power hungry unchecked megalomaniac. There was some truth to the picture that was painted but the Director was doing what the job required of him. Had he crossed some lines? Yes. Had he targeted US citizens? He had. But despite the laws Anthony Miles bent in order to protect this country, in his mind he did it all for the greater good of the United States of America.

Miles defense attorney had carefully combed through the entire witness list prior the trial. Each name was listed, interviewed, their interviews recorded to show the client what he could potentially expect and defenses were planned out well in advance for dealing with each and every witness. There was one name that the prosecution had that the person was unavailable for questioning prior to the trial as they were apparently in witness protection for "allegedly" another case. Miles looked at the name but it wasn't ringing any bells.

"What is the story with this witness?" Director Miles asked his attorney.

"He is here for character assassination. I have a rebuttal for him all set." Miles Attorney informed him.

The Director was not sure though. Unfortunately he had no way of looking into this particular witness at this time as they were in the process of hearing the prosecutor's first witness. Miles had to admit, his attorney was good. For every good point the prosecution made he found a way to counter it. The entire case was at times like watching tennis only with lawyers. It took five work days for the prosecution to make it through all of his witness until only Edgar Richards was left. Richards was called into the court and he was escorted in by three federal marshals.

Director Miles turned to face his accuser and froze the moment that he saw him. "No... He's supposed to be dead." Miles whispered to his lawyer.

Indeed, the day he was taken into custody Senator Matthews had shown the Director photographs of his pet operative dead and mangled body. At the time the Director had the photos analyzed to see if there were any photographic manipulations done to doctor the image. The image had come back as 100% authentic, not photo shopped in a computer. Richards name had long since been deleted from the official record, that was why Miles could not recall it. Even if he had the name looked up in the official database it wouldn't have found any as the Director had deleted him from the agency's database years ago.

"You can not let him testify." Miles informed his attorney.

"I have no recourse here. He's on the approved witness list and has already been read in." The attorney stated.

"Give me your legal pad." Miles requested.

The lawyer handed the pad to Miles and the man scribbled something on to it, ripped that partition of the paper from the pad and passed it back to the woman known as The Assistant. The young woman stood and excused herself from the courtroom. Miles attorney could only watch and see how his defense was shot to hell by this one witness. He was indeed there for character assassination, the problem was the information he knew was beyond anything that had been discussed up until that time by he and his client. He admitted to being a covert CIA operative working almost exclusively in the United States for the entire tenure of his career. He aided various operative, that he could name, in the assassinations of the people listed in the files that he was to try and prove were false but now could not as items that were only in the file til that point were now being corroborated by a witness that had carried out said orders.

"You're going to want to start your cross examination from the opposite side of the room." Director Miles informed his attorney after he looked at his watch.

With much trepidation the attorney followed his clients advice and he began walking to the opposite side of the room with his back to the wall, Plausible deniability. That was the last calm thought the lawyer had before the the west wall exploded. The shockwave sent him flying into the east wall. The court room was then filled with three smoke canisters the filled room while figures in black suits and masks rushed in weapons at the ready. The men picked up Anthony Miles and produced a set of bolt cutters and cut him out of his restraints. Once free he was rushed through the opening in the west wall with the men firing into the air to make a point to anyone trying to play hero. In less than five minutes the Director had been extracted, and was on a fast transport out of the area. Now that he was free the Director rubs his wrists first, glad to finally be free of his akward restraints.

"Well... that ended up being an unmitigated disaster." Miles said to the Assistant.

"The Senator pulled the wool over your eyes. Do you think Fuller was in on that?" The auburn haired woman of mystery asked her employer.

"No... Fuller obviously used the Heartbreaker to win Senator Matthews favor, the Senator obviously didn't tell him that he was keeping our asset alive. Tell the Ops team to initiate Operation: Rogue Group." Miles told his assistant. "What is the status of Operation: Reclamation?" Anthony Miles demands to know.

"The asset has arranged for Senator Matthews to be dealt with today with no ties to you." His assistant informed Miles.

"And his other outstanding issue?" Miles asks.

"Fuller went to ground on the sixteenth of March and he hasn't shown himself since the asset lost him in San Francisco. Fuller and all of those closest to him have also gone to ground. We are monitoring their finances and their passports have been red flagged but there have been no signs of them for over two months." The assistant states.

"Of course they haven't been setting off any flags. Fuller knows our playbook inside and out. He was part of over dozens of missions similar to this on every continent. No, we're looking for someone outside of his immediate circle, but someone still of importance to him... List." Miles says holding out his hand. Miles took the tablet and looked over all of the names on the list in regards to Jackson Fuller's contacts.

"I'm missing something." Miles announces. "No... the list is missing someone. Pull up Fuller's file for the past ten years."

Jackson Fuller's file pops up on the assistant's laptop and she mirrors the screen to the tablet being held by the director. He scrolls to Fuller's personal contacts and with the execption of two very high profile people, everyone else is accounted for in his list of family and close associates. That is until the former director of DOCA comes to the one name that registers as an emergency contact from 2031-2034.

"Re-task the asset to acquire this person, alive and unharmed." Anthony Miles orders his assistant. The assistant took the tablet from her boss and digitized the information and sent it to Sunjaya.

The asset in question was currently watching live video feeds on six 32 inch monitors as his operation to eliminate the senator was underway. Senator Matthews was being escorted by his security detail from the senate to his limousine. Four men surrounded him at all times from the moment he left the doorway to the time he was inside his armored car. The moment the door shut his car was surrounded by two team of Ukrainian mobsters. The well dressed men were armed with AK-200's and one with an RPK-16. The senator's protection detail was immediately riddled with automatic weapons fire. The sound of 5.45 x 39mm rounds filled the area as the armored piercing bullets cut through the limousines punched through the armored plates like a fist through a wet paper bag. The mobsters opened the doors to the limos and checked the bodies. The Ukrainian with an RPK-16 had a video camera attached to the barrel near the handguard. Sunjaya verified that the senator and his entourage were indeed dead and then gave the signal. A team of FBI agents arrived on scene and while the Ukrainians were in the process of reloading their weapons were themselves gunned down.

Sunjaya flipped open his burner phone and dialed the number. "The senator, his detail and our resources have been dealt with. "

"Excellent. You should have a lead on acquiring your primary target. Instruction are enclosed in the file." Anthony Miles informs the man.

Sunjaya opens his phone and sees to the picture with her last known location. The target is just a short two hour flight away and he can hopefully be finished with this assignment and be home by the weeks end. No assignment has taken this long. It's been more trouble than its worth. Sunjaya thinks to himself.

~ May 27, 2037 1135 hrs ~

Jackson Fuller and his lady love Roxanne Mahan, or as they were currently known to the community they were living in Marc Brewer and Olivia Carter, were currently sitting outside under the covered deck of the cottage they were living at. It was just about midday and the couple had spent the morning down at the improvised firing range that Jackson had constructed for shooting practice. Since Rocki had never even held a firearm prior to two months ago Jackson had spent quite a bit of time teaching Rocki the basics of firearms safety and shooting. Rocki had fired off so many rounds from various handguns and rifles that by this point in time she no longer blinked when the weapons she used discharged. After cleaning the pistols that they had run a hundred or so rounds through the lovebirds put their weapons away and were contemplating a run into town for a quick bite to eat as well as to get groceries for dinner. While they sat trying to figure out what they were actually going to do Rocki took a moment to remember exactly how it was that they ended up owning this amazing piece of property.

~March 16, 2034 1815 hrs~

Upon his return from his sojourn to San Francisco Jackson was a wreak. Rocki had heard the roar of his NSX's engine in the distance and he fast stopped the car in the rocky drive. Jackson slams the door to his car, Rocki is worried because he never does that. Jackson is mumbling as he power walks past her and straight into the bathroom. He stripes out of his clothes and got into the shower to clean up. As he did this Rocki sat on the toilet while Jackson went over how exciting his trip to San Francisco had been.

"Jackson... honey..." Rocki starts with her hands in front of her face. "Why did you have to go back to the city again? I know you like to be vague and cryptic but what was really so important that it almost cost you your life?" Rocki asked her lover.

Jackson stands silently as the cool water runs down his now soaked dark hair. Once his nerves were calmed he turns the heat of the water up and answers, "It was very important to me... let's just leave it at that for now."

Rocki can see the tension emanating from Jackson as he soaks in the shower over this latest incident and knows whatever it was that caused him to have to go into San Francisco must have been very important to him. Rocki stands up and pulls her top up and over her head. She then removed her slacks and panties and opens the sliding shower door. She slides into the shower and wraps her arms around Jackson's waist as the spray from the water begins running down her hair. Rocki kisses his tense shoulders, and the bullet scars on his right shoulder.

"You're safe, and back in my arms... that's all that matters to me." Rocki informed her lover. Jackson turned in the shower and began kissing Rocki. The two continued to kiss and play in the shower until the water got cold.

The couple went into town the following day to see the owner of the property they were staying at.

"How did you like your stay at our little ranch cottage?" The owner asked.

"It's so beautiful. I love it." Rocki under the guise of Olivia Carter announced. She was trying to channel Ramona's more upbeat and laid back persona as opposed to her more rigid personality.

"Out of curiosity... I'm sure it means a lot to you but what would you want for it if someone were willing to buy it from you?" Jackson asked calmly. He knew Rocki really loved the cottage and given the owner's age, he might be willing to take a large payday now so he could do other things rather than manage a cottage.

"Oh that cottage is very popular. My family has owned the land and that place for three generations. Unfortunately I don't have anyone to pass it on to..." The old man sadly stated. Jackson was sure there was a story and he and Rocki would gladly hear it if it meant the old man was be willing to part with it. Stephen Brown, the owner, had the couple sit while he told them the history of his family, how they came to this area, built that cottage. How his family eventually expanded into town but as they years went on they moved away and as time went on their family lines died out. He was the youngest grandchild of the Brown family and had never had any children. His wife passed away some time ago and had only recently begun to consider putting the property on the market.

"Mr Brown, would you consider this..." Jackson said sliding the gentleman a folded piece of paper. "a reasonable offer."

Mr Brown took the paper and looked at the number. He must be horrible at poker. Jackson thought to himself as he could clearly see the disbelief in the mans eyes.

"I... I... would grudgingly accept this offer... if you are serious that is." Stephen Brown said.

Rocki was very excited and the couple said they were very serious about the offer. It wasn't until they returned to the soon to be new home that Rocki learned the actual number that Jackson had offered the older man. Mr Brown contacted his attorney and arranged the immediate sale. While they were doing this Jackson, under his guise as Marc Brewer, had gone to the local bank to begin the process of transferring the funds to Mr Brown's account as soon as the deal was finalized. As a pre-celebration Jackson and Rocki sat outside in only a large blanket as they decided to watch the sunset from the deck of their new home.

"Jackson... you can't be serious!" Rocki scolded her lover when she heard the amount. "Half a million dollars! I love this place but we can't possibly afford that and live off the grid."

"First off I did the math. For the cost of the cabin and the land plus figuring two years worth of rental fees if he were to have actually rented it out every day for that amount of time came out to about that number. By giving him that figure it was a safe bet that he would accept it. Now as for how I intend to pay for it, I am using funds that is siphoned from the Director." Jackson tells Rocki as he pulls her into his lap.

"Once the director was arrested and the feds began shutting down his department I accessed his operational accounts using the cloned hard drive and transferred all of their operational budget from their off shore bank accounts to various banks throughout the world. Each of those banks took a small fee to mask the transfers until the money was safely deposited inside the stateside account of one Marc Brewer. That bank, and that account are located here in town. Why else do you think I picked this town to hold up in?"

"I always thought it was because it was off the beaten path and you just really liked this cabin." Rocki answered.

"True. The town bank was more than happy to have such a large influx of funds with no questions asked. I transferred a portion of the money into all of the accounts I have set up for our family members and friends that are in hiding. Now they all have additional funds as needed... and we get to live in our cottage."

"You are incredible Ja... Marc Brewer." Rocki says kissing him soundly.

"I have my moments Olivia." He replies before turning her about and kissing her lips deeply.

~ May 27 1305 hrs ~

Chloe Donovan-Brennan was home for lunch sitting at her dining room table with her husband of three months. Sean Brennan worked as a videographer and his primary office was based out of their home. Chloe was currently an accountant for a law firm near her home so she was able join her new husband for lunch quite often. The two were enjoying a nice Chicken Caesar Salad when the doorbell rang. As Chloe was the one with a limited time for lunch Sean got up to go answer the door. Opening the door, Sean came face to face with a man slightly shorter than his 5 foot nine inch frame. The man was of Asian descent (or so he assumed), was nicely dressed and had a large clipboard in front of his chest.

"Hello, is Chloe Donovan home?" The Asian man asked Sean.

"No, Chloe Brennan is home though." Sean informed the unknown male.

"Thank you." The man replied. Dropping the clipboard, Sean Brennan found himself staring down the suppressed barrel of a Glock 17. The weapon discharged three soft pops sending Sean crashing into the hall closet. The bullets punctured each lung and his heart with deadly accuracy.

Chloe watched as her husbands body hit the closet and then slumped to the ground. She could see the vacant look in his eyes, staring in her direction. Before she could even scream her would be assailant drew a smaller Glock pistol and fires a round striking her in the neck. The round that hits her is a dart, not a bullet and the last thing Chloe sees before she blacks out is the figure of her husband's killer closing the door to their home and walking towards her.

~ May 28, 2037 1530 hrs ~

Jackson was currently outside on the deck of his home with his laptop sifting though some of the Director's files. Ever since he learned that Anthony Miles was on the loose and about the death of Jessica's father, Senator Matthews, he had been on high alert. Jackson and Rocki always made it a point to wear hats while they were walking about town and never looked up during the times that surveillance satellites were overhead. Jackson had contacts in the government that would still talk to him in intelligence and they would send him a notice to a special burner phone if there was an update to the schedule.

Rocki came out to give Jackson something to eat as he had not moved from that spot all morning. She knew he ate a bowl of cereal but that was all she had seen him ingest since he set up his computer. "I brought you a turkey club. You haven't had anything since you ate breakfast and you're going to burn yourself out if you keep staring at the screen without anything in your stomach." Rocki said trying to be supportive and nurturing.

"Thanks." Jackson said taking the sandwich and eating it without breaking away from his monitor.

"The Director's escape really has you worried doesn't it." Rocki inquired.

"The man broke out of federal custody while on trial at the same time that Jessica's father was gunned down by Ukrainian gunmen. You can be certain that if our family and friends weren't already in hiding that we all would have been killed at the exact same time as Jessica's father." Jackson states.

Rocki was about to add something when a box popped up on Jackson's laptop screen indicating Jackson had an incoming phone call. The dialogue box was for the phone Jackson had not used since the night he arrived at his mother's home last December. The phone was currently set up at the abandoned CIA depot Jackson had raided plugged into the power outlet set to forward the call to a series of cellphones before it finally hit the last one that would transmit to his laptop.

"Miles, its' been a age. How are you doing? Oh how was jail?" Jackson asked while he looked at his screen. He had the digital map of his phones up as well as video feeds on each of the locations to see how many people he might be dealing with. He was surprised to find that no trace was being initiated which was standard protocol in a situation like this, even if he didn't have the full resources once at his disposal he had to have had someone that was capable of running a simple trace.

"Let's skip the witty banter Fuller. You have something that belongs to me. I want my hard drive files, any copies of the drive that you have made... oh, and I want you to bring them to me." Miles informed his former subordinate.

"So you figured you'd just call and tell me this and I would just be a good little boy and bring them to you?" Asked Jackson sarcastically as he continued to watch his screen. He couldn't believe that they weren't trying to trace his location. The only reason they wouldn't try and track him down... Oh No! Jackson thought to himself.

"No. I knew I'd have to coax you out of where ever it is you are hiding these days. As such I have someone here that would like to say something to you." Miles informed Jackson.

Jackson could hear some movement in whatever room they were in. He could hear some low voices before the phone was handed off to someone. "Jackson." A female voice came over the phone.

"Chloe?" Jackson replied. He knew it in his heart. If there was anyone that the Director could use against him it would be the one woman that he hadn't contacted since February.

"Tell me something, something only you would know Chloe." Jackson said to the person on the other end of the phone.

"September 15, 2034." Chloe answered. The answer meant nothing to anyone other than the two of them.

Jackson was normally very calm and collected, or at least he had learned to become that way since his teen years. For the first time in ages he was seething inside. He felt like a volcano just before it erupted. However he needed to hide that from his former boss. Pushing all of his feelings down, Jackson simply asked, "When and where Miles?"

"We are in Phoenix, Arizona... it seemed stupid for us to meet you someplace you can get to ahead of us and scout out. So why don't you return to your secondary home state." The former director informed Fuller.

"It will take me at least 10 hours to drive there as I am still on the no fly list." Jackson stated.

"We'll meet at 1530 hours tomorrow. That will give you plenty of time to get here and rest up before we finish our business. Send me a text at 1500 hours and I will give your our exact location so you can't set up any kind of impromptu rescue operation." Miles states.

Jackson watched the phone call end and he stared at the screen for several minutes after the call ended. Rocki watched the expression on Jackson's face. She imagine he was on the verge of exploding like a volcano. She thought the voice on the other end of the phone sounded extremely familiar she just couldn't place it.

"Jackson... who does he have?" Rocki asks.

Jackson releases the breath he had not realized he was holding until that moment. Fighting to maintain his composure Jackson closes his eyes and says, "Chloe... He has Chloe Donovan."

"Chloe Donovan... how would your former boss even know about her? I haven't thought about her in over 10 years." Rocki informs Jackson.

"He knows about her because she was my emergency contact for three years." Jackson tells Rocki.

"And why was that?"

"Because we were engaged Rocki. I was engaged to Chloe Donovan for just over two years." Explained Jackson. He opens a folder on his desktop that Rocki didn't really notice until that moment and three quick clicks and the photograph of Jackson and Chloe standing happily outside of a house pops up before her eyes. Looking to Chloe's left hand she sees an engagement ring on her ring finger.

"I beg your pardon?" Rocki starts and then stops.

Jackson did not go into further details. He simply shut the lid to his laptop, disconnected it from the power cable, and put them into his carrying case. Walking into the cottage he shared with Rocki, Jackson went to his side of the bed and pulled out the storage trunk he kept there. First he removed the two tactical vests. One for him and one for Rocki. He then pulled out three handguns and several containers of pre-loaded magazines.

"Are we going to talk about this some more?" Rocki asked her very secretive lover.

"It's a ten hour drive so we have plenty of time to discuss it." Jackson says he begins carrying the items in question to the Jackson's Acura NSX.

It was just before 3AM that Jackson Fuller and Rocki Mahan arrived at the Phoenix residence of Jackson Fuller. Rocki had slept the second half of the drive (having driven the first half). Despite the early hour Jackson was still wide awake and very alert. This was a carryover from his days in the field. With everything going on in his mind he probably wouldn't sleep a wink until Chloe was safe and Anthony Miles was dealt with. Rocki looked at the house which was nicely lit by the moon and few street lights still on.

"So what is this place exactly?" Rocki asks Jackson.

"It was my home when I lived in Phoenix." Jackson answered.

"You're home... so you were engaged to a mutual friend of ours for almost three years. You had a house in a state I didn't even know you lived in, much less visited. Any other secrets that I absolutely should know?" Inquired Rocki.

"I would like to point out that you never exactly gave me a detailed history of the twelve years we were separated." Jackson reminded the tired Roxanne Mahan.

"Fine... just show me where the bed is so I can pass out." Rocki relented. She was far to tired to get into a verbal spat with Jackson.

Jackson unlocked the door to the house from the garage, giving Rocki one of the passcodes to the keyless entry. Even through the haze and glazed eyes Rocki took note of how nice the house looked. Jackson led Rocki through the main hall, around the bend to the master bedroom and pulled back the plastic covering over the sheets and then pulled back the bedspread for her. Rocki quickly kicked off her shoes, dropped her jeans, and climbed into the inviting bed. Quickly making herself comfortable, Rocki was out like a light mere minutes after her head hit the very soft pillow. Jackson on the other hand was still incredibly wired and he had plans to make as his meeting was in just over twelve hours.

~ May 29, 2037 15:25 hrs ~

It was now the appointed time and Jackson Fuller stood in the middle of a barren field in Phoenix, Arizona making his way to the trio out in the open. Jackson was wearing gray cargo pants, a silver 5.11 shirt, and black magnum combat boots. He had a black Universal Tactical Shoulder holster with a dual magazine pouch that he kept his backup weapon, a Beretta PX4 Storm SD Type F chambered in .45 ACP. Jackson had already drawn his primary sidearm, a custom Beretta 96 with a compensator mounted on the front for increased accuracy, what looks like a Laser Aiming Module on the underside rail and has loaded extended magazines into his weapon and spare ammo pouches. Jackson has his weapon aimed at the Asian male that is holding a Glock 17 at the head of a woman very dear to Jackson Fuller's heart.

"Chloe, are you ok?" Jackson asks his former fiance. Chloe simply nods her head yes. Jackson can see the red in her eyes. As she is the only one here Jackson can easily guess what the assassin did to her husband. "Why did you have to drag her into this Miles? Was she really your only trump card left?"

"You left me with no other options save your aunt and surrogate sister. They were too far away to grab and bring to an optimal location for this little swap." Miles explained.

"Did you really have to kill her husband?" Jackson asked as he focused his weapon on the former director of DOCA. While he was not one hundred percent certain it was a safe bet after his encounter with this assassin that her husband was very expendable.

"Necessary... no. Expedient... yes. Now, this only ends one way Fuller, surrender your weapons, yourself and the files." The former DOCA director Anthony Miles orders his former employee.

"That's where you're wrong Miles. You think you have the board covered and that you're one move away from Checkmate, but you're missing my final three moves. Jackson says as he continues to close the distance between himself and the four figures in front of him. The Director, his assistant, Sunjaya and the hostage all watch as he moves withing ten feet of them. The director has Jackson covered by four snipers perched atop elevated positions with a clear line of sight on Jackson Fuller's head. One signal and four high powered rounds puncture his skull.

Jackson's weapon is aimed at Sunjaya's forehead, as he takes a quick look at the phablet on a wrist mount on his left arm. "Only four snipers Miles... I'm insulted you think so little of me." Jackson says after looking at the display.

"So you know what you're up against... that makes this simpler." Miles states. He's about to make a final rant when his personal line rings.

"You're going to want to answer that Miles... it could be important." Jackson says not taking his eyes off of the Asian hitman.

Miles turns around and answers the phone. "Director Miles. Wait... stop. Why are you calling me? What?" Miles asks in disbelief.

Jackson Fuller is only privy to what Miles is saying on this side of the call but he is quite sure he knows almost word for word what is being told to Anthony Miles. Miles closes the burner phone and turns back to the man across the way.

"What have you done?" Miles asked Jackson.

"I initiated my endgame. I've spent the last two months combing through all of your computer files. I broke up the important content into three categories. All mission operation reports are poised to be e-mailed to every news outlet in the world. Your deeds will be published in print and online for everyone to see. Second, all of your clandestine storage units will be divulged to local law enforcement offices. I'm sure many of those departments will like the upgraded equipment and cash that they seize." Jackson says.

Anthony Miles is quickly loosing his composure but Jackson has one final trump card to play. "Finally, all of your covert operatives... I will send their real id's to their marks or persons of interest. You can consider them all BURNED!"

"You didn't..." Miles starts to say but Jackson relaxes his stance and takes his weapon off of Sunjaya.

"No, I didn't... yet. I have given up one story, one storage depot, and one high profile operative, as you just found out. If I don't leave here alive and unharmed with Chloe Donovan in the same condition, all of those things will happen before you get a hundred feet from where you're standing." Jackson says proving that he was not bluffing about his intent.

Anthony Miles is seething as he stands in the Arizona desert. As the warm wind blows dust through the air he realizes that his current and future operation hinge on the last two items. Realizing he has no other options Miles say, "Name your terms Fuller."

"First, you will let Chloe go right now! At the same time, you will also have your assistant give the orders to your snipers to vacate the area. I have a video feed via satellite so I will know if you follow through on this." Jackson orders his former supervisor.

Anthony Miles orders Sunjaya to lower his weapon and release the girl. The assassin reluctantly does so and Chloe quickly makes her way to Jackson. Jackson double taps his phablet as Chloe nears him. When she is safely behind him she wraps her arms around his waist. "Chloe, take the phablet off of my left arm and put it on yours. That is a live satellite feed, if those four red dots on those peeks don't leave let me know." Jackson says.

Chloe carefully unstraps the phablet from Jackson's arm and places it on her left arm. She tells Jackson that the dots are leaving. Jackson instructs Chloe to move back with him. The two slowly back up several steps. Chloe turns when she hears an engine behind her. A familiar looking Honda Pilot skids to a stop besides the pair. The passenger door flies open and Chloe hears a girl yell, "Chloe, GET IN!"

"Rocki?" A stupefied Chloe responds seeing the black haired girl sitting in the drivers side of Jackson's SUV.

"GET IN NOW!" Rocki screams at her friend. Chloe scrambles for the SUV and once the door is secure the two women are off like a shot and out of the area post haste. Jackson watches as the SUV carrying Rocki and Chloe leaves the immediate area.

"What are your remaining terms?" Miles demands to know.

"From this moment on, Jackson Fuller and all of his extended family don't exist as far as the world is concerned. You will call in whatever favors you still have outstanding to remove all the marks on us. Do I make myself clear?"

"You and you're family will be forgotten." Miles agrees.

"And one more thing..." Jackson says. Jackson quickly levels, aims, and fires his Beretta 96 at Sunjaya. Jackson was so quick the assassin barely gets his arm up to aim but is too late and the bullet penetrates his forehead blowing out the back of his skull. Sunjaya's body fall with a loud thud while Jackson shifts his aim to Anthony Miles. "That was for Chloe."

"Kill either of us and your terms are invalidated. Every asset in the world will abandon their assignment and dedicate the rest of their lives to eliminating all of your loved ones. I can also guarantee that it will be in the most visceral way possible." Miles yells.

"Ok." Jackson says. He starts to lower his weapon but then adjusts his aim and fires two shots. The first strikes Miles in his left knee. The second round struck the assistant in the middle of her right hand blowing out the center bone of her middle finger just bellow the knuckle. He walked over to Miles and collected the cellphones from Sunjaya, Miles and his assistant.

"Really poor choice of words Miles. You will note that you are in fact, not dead. I expect you to honor your deal and you won't hear a peep from me ever again. If anyone I care about gets so much as a papercut from someone they don't know, I wouldn't want to be your people out in the field... because we both know you can't pull many of them from their deep cover operations." Fuller informed his former boss who had crawled over to Sunjaya's corpse and was ripping the dead man's shirt and using it to stop the bleeding.

Jackson Fuller walked, weapon in hand, to the spot where he was supposed to find a car waiting for him. The ride was arranged and yet it was not where it was supposed to be. Just as Jackson was reaching for his cellphone to call Rocki back he heard the sound of rotor blades in the distance. Jackson Fuller squatted down and waited as he was quite sure that whoever was in that helicopter was coming for him. Holstering his sidearm, Jackson just waited patiently as the helicopter neared. Jackson pulled out a set of sunglasses that he had in his left thigh pocket and put them on. Jackson watched as a Blackhawk helicopter landed doors open besides him. Dirt and debris were flying around as Jackson noted that the rotors stayed engaged so he knew the pilot wasn't planning to be on the ground for very long. Jackson walked up to and climbed aboard the helicopter. The moment he was aboard he felt the helicopter lift up into the air.

"Mr Fuller... You're a hard man to catch up to. If Miles hadn't managed to draw you out into the open with the intent to kill you we might never have found you." The professional looking woman said from the seat across from Jackson.

"So were you planning on intervening if I hadn't resolved my own situation or did you have that much faith in my abilities." Jackson asked.

The woman in question moved her long flowing brunette hair and Jackson watched as she just smiled as her answer.

"Ok, so you found me. Care to tell me who you are and why you're looking for me?" Jackson asked not really in the mood for games.

"You can call me Athena." The brunette informs Jackson. Jackson quickly assess the woman in front of him. She is striking with a slight tan to her complexion. Her dark sunglasses obstructed part of her facial features and eye color. Besides her physical attractiveness she seems very confident, does not appear to be too stuffy but not aloof either.

"Athena... the goddess of wisdom and battle strategies... subtle." Jackson says.

"But appropriate. I represent a faction of the United States government that doesn't have a name if you get what I meaning." Athena says.

"I do." Jackson answers.

"We want your help with an operation that you are uniquely qualified to help us with." Athena says handing Jackson a tablet. Jackson flips though the data and takes in what he's being shown.

"I'm not really interested in working for the United States government... but say I'm willing to help you... what exactly do I get for my troubles." Jackson asks.

"Oh I think you'll like the payoff for this assignment." Athena informs Jackson as the helicopter that they are on flies of to an undisclosed location.

The End (for now)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Casting call - Athena: Charisma Carpenter
> 
> Phablet: Phone/Tablet
> 
> AN: So after 10 Chapters and 4 side stories Burned has reached the end of the first series. I have a sequel series already plotted and in the early stages of being written. For more information on my writing progress go to my blog the link can be found on my profile. Thank you.


End file.
